Brauen, the daughter of Swiss ethnologist
Martin Brauen and
Tibetan artist
Sonam Dolma Brauen, started her acting career with small roles in Swiss television series. She had her Hollywood debut in the film
Aeon Flux in the role of Inari. Since then, she has played in various American independent productions including a minor role in
Al Pacino's
Salomaybe, an adaptation of
Oscar Wilde's
Salome and the leading part in the German film
Asudem (2006) by
Daryush Shokof. In addition to her acting work, Brauen has drawn media attention with her public advocacy on behalf of the
Tibetan people. In 1999, she co-organised demonstrations against Chinese leader
Jiang Zemin's visit to Switzerland, and in 2001 a photograph of her being arrested in Moscow during a protest against the award of the
2008 Summer Olympics to
Beijing was used in news reports worldwide.
Eisenvogel ("Iron Bird"), Brauen's account of her grandmother Kunsang's and her mother Sonam's escape from Tibet, and her own youth in exile, was published in 2009 and became a bestseller in Germany. It was later published in English as
Across Many Mountains. ==Works==