She attends art academy in München from 1959 to 1962 studying painting and photography. She then moves to Paris where she works as a painter and photographer and writes her first filmscript.
Back in Germany in 1969 she initiates and runs Visuell, a film organisation and the art gallery Gallerypress. With the money she made in Paris she produces her first film Laokoon und Söhne in 1972.
During the next 20 years Ottinger makes 17 films not only directing, but producing, writing, filming and building the sets as well. Her huge image archive serves as a source of inspiration.
She has also produced some 15 photo exhibitions, several theatre plays and radio programmes and she wrote filmscripts and essays and published a travel book on Mongolia.