txiab neeb Vaj
filmmaking / storyteller / community engagement
Txiab Neeb Vaj is a cultural historian, filmmaker, and community organizer based in Saint Paul, Minnesota. A deeply reflective and engaged storyteller, Txiab Neeb draws on personal history, ancestral traditions, and cultural symbolism to illuminate the Hmong experience in both intimate and sweeping ways.
Born into a history marked by resilience and migration, Txiab Neeb’s early memories include living in a house where a natural spring once emerged in the living room—a vivid metaphor for the unpredictable and transformative power of nature. He recalls swimming across the mighty Mekong River with plastic bags strapped around his waist, tied by rope to his father, older brother, and cousin—a harrowing journey that embodies both the peril and solidarity that have defined refugee histories.
These formative experiences shape Txiab Neeb’s work as both an artist and historian. He is deeply inspired by traditional Hmong cosmology, including the four celestial animal deities of feng shui: the phoenix of the sky, the turtle of the mountains, the tiger of the land, and the eastern dragon of the sea. These symbols influence not only his personal worldview—marked by a respect and cautious awe for water—but also his approach to storytelling that seeks to balance the forces of tradition, memory, and contemporary life.
Through film, community organizing, and cultural education, Txiab Neeb Vaj is dedicated to preserving and sharing Hmong histories and values while fostering spaces where community members can reflect on, celebrate, and reimagine their identities together.
Qualifications
Txiab Neeb Vaj is an experienced cultural historian with a deep understanding of Hmong traditions, cosmology, and migration narratives. As a filmmaker, he uses visual storytelling to document and share complex cultural histories, personal experiences, and community knowledge in accessible and engaging ways.
He is also an accomplished community organizer, committed to creating spaces for dialogue, cultural preservation, and collective empowerment among Hmong and broader Southeast Asian diasporic communities. His work integrates personal storytelling with historical research, honoring both lived experience and ancestral knowledge to strengthen cultural continuity and foster intergenerational learning.
SKILLS
research and archival skills
strong communication skills
culturally connected
well respected
CURATORIAL EXPERIENCE
QDN film retrospect curator
oral historian at In Progress