About

Sara Gunnarsdóttir (1982) is an Academy Award nominated director and artist who has created animation, music videos, and original artwork for film and television, including Marielle Heller’s celebrated debut feature “The Diary of a Teenage Girl,” and HBO’s Emmy-nominated “The Case Against Adnan Sayed.”

Sara was born and raised in Reykjavik, Iceland, where she received her BFA from the Icelandic Academy of the Arts, while creating and performing with the electro punk band Donna Mess. She received her MFA in Experimental Animation from CalArts, and her thesis animated documentary short, “The Pirate of Love,” was nominated for “Best Alternative” in The Academy’s Student Academy Awards.

Sara most recently directed the animated comedy “My Year of Dicks,” created by Pamela Ribon (Moana, Nimona), for FX Network. The film won Special Jury Awards at SXSW for Unique Vision in Writing and Directing and earned Sara a nomination for an Oscar in 2023.

Her work has been showcased at New Directors / New Films, AFI Fest, SXSW, Annecy and the Telluride Film Festival.

Sara currently lives and works in Reykjavík, Iceland with her husband, Ethan Clarke, and daughter Gréta.

sara.gunnarsdottir@gmail.com

Clients include: HBO, FX Network, MTV and AppleTV

Press:

Animation Magazine

ZIPPY Frames

The VFX Process

Kvikmyndapod

Deadline

Cartoon Brew

Variety

Bustle

Motionographer