Aung Khant Si Thu is an award-winning multimedia journalist and photojournalist based in Bangkok. He works as a cenimatographer on documentaries, cameraman and photojournalist for news outlets and researcher to the institute to NGOs and institute across the Asia. His reporting spans Asia with a focus on conflict, human rights, transnational crime, and the hidden world of scam networks. He regularly works with the Swiss public broadcaster SRF as a cameraman across the region, and has also collaborated with international outlets including Al Jazeera, Sky News, National Geographic, ABC’s Foreign Correspondent, and Der Spiegel.
He began his career in 2013 and joined The Myanmar Times in 2014, where he rose to Head of Multimedia and worked until 2021, leaving after the military coup to continue his work in exile. Alongside his newsroom experience, he built a strong foundation in visual storytelling through beginner, intermediate, and advanced photography classes at the Institut Français de Birmanie in Yangon in 2014. He later expanded his studies with a diploma in Diplomacy Journalism from TRT News Academy in Antalya, Turkey in 2016, and a diploma in International Studies from Anadolu Agency in Ankara, Turkey in 2018.
Since then, he has produced and directed stories that bring Asian voices to global audiences. His work with Al Jazeera has included contributions to Al Jazeera English, Al Jazeera Documentary, Al Jazeera 101 East, and Talk to Al Jazeera. With National Geographic’s Emmy Award-winning series Trafficked, he worked on cross-border investigations.
Aung Khant Si Thu’s work has been recognized internationally through major industry awards and nominations. He contributed as a producer to the “Scam City” episode of National Geographic’s Trafficked series, which has been nominated for the Emmy Awards in 2026, with results expected in May. The series has also been nominated for the Peabody Awards, reflecting the strength of collaborative storytelling at the highest level. In the documentary field, his cinematography work on "When a Poet Goes to War" received recognition at the Taiwan International Film Festival in 2024 and at Docs by the Sea in Bali in 2025, further establishing his presence within the global documentary community.
In addition to frontline reporting, he has conducted multiple research studies for organizations such as the European Union, GI-TOC, Hong Kong University, and leading energy research groups, focusing on regional security, migration, and transnational crime. With over a decade of experience, his reporting has taken him across Myanmar, Bangladesh, India, Malaysia, Turkey, South Korea, Thailand, Cambodia, Laos, and beyond, covering current affairs, armed conflict, political upheaval, forced migration, environmental crises, and the rise of scam compounds.
In addition to journalism and documentary work, he also produces multimedia content for international organizations and NGOs, including photography, video production, documentaries, and visual storytelling projects. His clients have included the European Union (EU), World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF), Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ), Amnesty International and the Soneva Foundation.
Aung is drawn to character-driven stories that reveal the forces shaping the region. His recent projects explore youth resistance under military rule, women-led armed groups, and the human toll of organized crime and displacement. In addition to journalism, he has worked with INGOs and research organizations on investigations into trafficking, scams, and arms smuggling. Born in Myanmar, he combines deep regional knowledge with a global perspective, blending investigative rigor with empathy, photography, and cinematic storytelling. He remains committed to amplifying underrepresented voices and expanding global understanding of Asia’s most urgent challenges.