Raised in a science and medical family, Sandra insisted on going against the grain and pursuing an artistic career. However, because of her love of the preciseness of science and insatiable curiosity of the beauty of art, she was able to find the perfect medium in the photography world. So at a fairly young age, it was her Nikon FG, which helped her discover the world around her and who she truly was, a cinematographer.

Sandra got her start in documentary, working for an Emmy-award winning documentary cameramen, Tony Foresta, who taught her beauty of the image is found in simplicity. During this time, she worked with clients including, Disney, Hilton, ABC and Discovery shooting documentary and reality-based programming.

After seven years as a camera assistant and operator, she decided it was time to pursue a full-time career as a cinematographer. She applied to the prestigious American Film Institute and was accepted into their MFA program in Cinematography. While at AFI, Sandra honed her craft in the art of visual storytelling, learning from the master cinematographers and deepening her knowledge of light and composition. She has had the invaluable opportunity to mentor under Stephen Lighthill, ASC, Steven Poster, ASC, Alan Caso, ASC, Larry Parker and Isidore Mankofksy, ASC.

Since graduating from AFI, Sandra has been able to take her passion of cinematography throughout all mediums of storytelling. Sandra shot the last season of the very popular MUN 2 Reality show, THE CHICAS PROJECT, which brought Sandra across the country. Her camera has allowed her to be part of the political and socially conscience filmmaking of BRAVE NEW FILMS. Just recently, Sandra had the lifetime opportunity of shooting Indie guru, Gregg Araki’s latest feature KABOOM that was an official selection at the 2010 Cannes Film Festival and 2011 Sundance Film Festival. KABOOM is presently being released throughout the Spring in 40 cities around the US. In Spring 2011 she is also looking forward to the video on-demand release of FLY AWAY, a feature she shot for director, Janet Grillo, plunging into the darker depths of autism by studying the everyday of a single mother and her highly impacted daughter.

Sandra’s passion is behind the camera and is constantly shooting to fulfill her love of visually telling stories. She continues to work in both the independent feature world and the documentary/reality industry. She is looking forward to a road of compelling narratives that she can help tell through the beauty of the visual language.