Biography
Based in England, Zara wrote and directed her first professional film in 2016 at age 18, resulting in the experimental short, ‘BULLDOGS’, acquired by Channel 4’s Random Acts. ‘BULLDOGS’ was exhibited during PLAYBACK Festival at the Institute of Contemporary Arts (ICA) and toured to various venues as part of the PLAYBACK Touring Exhibition. The film was also screened at the BFI Southbank, as part of the BFI’s Girlfriends Season.
The following Autumn Zara moved to London and began training at Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance, where she gained a First Class BA (Hons) Degree in Contemporary Dance in 2019. She has since been working as a dance performer and collaborator on a series of live works for stage and installation, whilst also working in film, advertisement, music videos, opera, fashion, and performance art across the UK and Europe.
In September 2020, she began working under a National Lottery Project Grant awarded by Arts Council England, developing the moving image work and exhibition ‘Hibernation Dream’, before touring the work to various galleries and spaces. More recently, she has been working on #CAPITAL in collaboration with UU Studios, CHENPENG and Sybarite Architects, as the project’s Dancer & Choreographer, which was nominated as a finalist for ‘Digital Project of the Year’ at The Stage Awards 2024. In late 2024 she completed working under her second grant from Arts Council England, Developing Your Creative Practice, focusing on positioning dance as visual art.
“Sands, in particular is a most accomplished dancer, creating both shape and depth in her extraordinary performance.”
“seemingly boundless facility.”
Zara’s artistic work has been showcased by platforms such as BFI Southbank, ICA, Royal Academy Lates, Channel 4’s Random Acts, videoclub and Birmingham International Dance Festival. She is a two-time semi-finalist in Brussels Contemporary Dance Contest, was awarded 1st Place in Hamburg Dance Competition (receiving the Jules Matberg Dance Award), and was awarded as finalist in Choreolab – Made in Ulm 2020.
She is currently dancing with Consensus & Aline Derderian, Dora Frankel Ensemble, and Livia Rita, as well as performing for various projects whilst represented by Crumb Agency and Take 3 Agency. Her previous clients as a performer include Selfridges, The Venetian, FKA Twigs, Metaverse Fashion Week, Jo Malone.