Ayla Pierrot Arendt studied figurative painting at the Akademie der bildenden Künste Wien  and choreography and performance at the Institut für Angewandte Theaterwissenschaften in Gießen. Her artistic work encompasses film, multimedia installations, and performances in which she explores societal values in democratic contexts and reflects on their transformation in light of current conflicts and protests. Through personal encounters and confrontations, she develops dialogical formats that make political realities tangible. Her current focus is on the media representation of suffering and the violence of the camera’s gaze—drawing on theories by Susan Sontag and applying them to today’s news feeds. Her short film “Gaze in Battle”, a cinematic engagement with intense experiences in Israel and Palestine in the summer of 2023, was awarded Best Short Film at the Lichter Filmfest and nominated for the documentary film award “Goldener Schlüssel” at the Kassel Dokfest.