Ute Aurand was born in 1957 in Frankfurt/Main, and grew up in Berlin. She is a teacher and curator, and a devoted 16mm filmmaker since 1980. She studied filmmaking at the Deutsche Film und Fernsehakademie Berlin (dffb) during the years 1979-1985. Since 1985 she began to produce her own films. In 1987 she founded "Ute Aurand Filmproduktion".

During 1990-95, she presented the series "Filmarbeiterinnen-Abend" at the Arsenal cinema, Berlin, featuring films made by women, mostly experimental. In 1995-96, organised "Sie zum Beispiel" (Her, for Example) at the Arsenal and Babylon cinemas, in which 12 women filmmakers /artists selected and presented a personal selection of films by other women filmmakers. In 1997, she co-founded the group FilmSamstag (Film Saturday) together with Renate Sami and Theo Thiesmeier, later joined by Bärbel Freund, Karl Heil, Milena Gierke and Johannes Beringer, to present a monthly film programme in Kino Filmkunsthaus Babylon Mitte until 2007. Since 1981 curated film programs e.g. "Lichtgedichte/Light Poems", "Hyacinths" and "Poetinnen mit der Kamera/Women Poets with the Camera" and monographic programs of films by Marie Menken, Margaret Tait and Utako Koguchi.

In 1991 she worked on the research project and book „Frauen machen Geschichte – 25 Jahre Studentinnen an der dffb“ (Women make History-25 Years of Women Students at the dffb), together with Maria Lang.