Sarah Derendinger, ​born in Lucerne and living in Basle, studied at the Hochschule für Gestaltung in Berne, where she was graduated with a diploma in photography. Keen to be educated professionally in Modern Dance, she moved on to Amsterdam’s Theaterschool AHK. 1988 to 1993 she attended Basel’s Hochschule für Gestaltung, specialising in audio-visual arts. She was awarded with a third diploma, when she participated in Ekran+, a course for European movie directors in Warsaw.

Sarah Derendinger has been a freelancing movie director, author and video artist since 1993. She is participating in international movie festivals regularly. For her Familientreffen (Family Meeting) she was awarded with the PRIX CINEMA SWISS at the Vision du réel Nyon in 2009. Several of her movies and installations have been aquired by public institutions. 

Sarah Derendinger has been collaborating with Calixto Bieito since 2013. Their common worklist was opened with Zimmermann’s Die Soldaten in Zurich, later transferred to Berlin’s Komische Oper and Madrid’s Teatro Real. Verdi’s The Force of Destiny, successfully premiered at London’s ENO, will have its American premiere in Toronto 2021. Reimann’s Lear in Paris, Halevy’s La Juive in Munich and Prokofjev’s The Fiery Angel intensified their artistic partnership step by step. Monteverdi’s L’incoronazione di Poppea came out in Zurich, Schoenberg's Moses und Aron and Ligeti’s Le Grand Macabre at Dresden’s Semperoper.

Sarah Derendinger’s work for Bernardo Atxaga’s drama Obabakoak at Bilbao’s Teatro Arriaga was honored with the Premis de la critica for videodesign in 2017.

Sarah Derendinger presents her video installations on expositions, in public spaces, on stages and at festivals, amongst them Berlin’s Theatertreffen or Mannheim’s Schillertage. She is collaborating with other directors as well. Amongst her partners are Jossi Wieler, Jürgen Flimm, Joachim Schlömer, Karin Beier und Heiner Goebbels. Barbara Horákóva is her directorial partner in Hanover, where Martinu’s Greek Passion is about to be premiered.

As a member of Calixto Bieito’s team Sarah Derendinger is currently working at the Opéra de Paris, where Wagner’s tetralogy Der Ring des Nibelungen will be completed in November 2020.