CoSTAR National Lab is delighted to announce the appointment of Sarah Ellis MBE as its new Director.
Sarah Ellis. Credit Ellie Smith
Sarah joins at a defining moment for Royal Holloway’s TARtional Lab appoints new director and the UK's creative industries.
Against the backdrop of the government's new Industrial Strategy, the CoSTAR National Lab appoints new director National Lab is entering an exciting next phase, marked by the imminent opening of its flagship AI-enabled converged production facility at Pinewood Studios.
With the opening of the CoSTAR Stage at Pinewood Studios in Autumn 2026, the CoSTAR National Lab, led by the University, will become a national centre for research, innovation and industry collaboration in converged media production.
As part of the UK-wide CoSTAR National Lab appoints new director Network and funded by the UKRI Infrastructure Fund and delivered by Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC), the National Lab helps creative businesses develop, test and commercialise new ideas.
It supports Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) to innovate and scale, accelerating the responsible adoption of AI and emerging technologies, and strengthening the UK's creative technology capability.
Through the CoSTAR Network, companies now have access to world-class facilities, specialist expertise, advanced AI compute, routes to market and innovation funding.
Sarah brings to the role extensive experience in immersive storytelling, audience engagement and creative technology. Most recently, she was Director of Creative Innovation at the Royal Shakespeare Company (RSC), where she worked for more than 14 years.
During her time at the RSC, she was Project Director for the Audience of the Future Live Performance Demonstrator, funded by Innovate UK, and led a consortium of arts organisations, research partners and technology companies, exploring the future of performances and real-time immersive experiences.
This resulted in Dream - a virtual performance to a large scale online global audience during the pandemic.
Sarah led a cross-industry collaboration with the RSC, Intel and the Imaginarium Studios for the RSC's 2016 production of The Tempest. She executive produced Lili, a convergence of theatre and gaming adaptation of Macbeth by INK Stories in collaboration with the RSC and Alambic Productions, becoming the first ever video game exhibited at Cannes Film Festival in 2025.
Widely regarded as a leading voice in the creative industries, Sarah currently serves as member of the Department for Culture, Media and Sport’s (DCMS) College of Experts.
She is also an Industry Champion for the Creative Industries Policy and Evidence Centre, which helps inform academic research to lead to better policies for the sector.
Her mentorship and advisory roles include being a board member of Figurative, an independent charity finding imaginative ways to grow the cultural and creative sectors’ financial resilience and social impact and is an advisory council member for the Academy of Live Technology based at Production Park.
Sarah Ellis MBE, incoming Director, CoSTAR National Lab, said: “I have been incredibly lucky to have developed a career collaborating with some of the best minds across theatre, film, TV, gaming and technology.
“As we experience the convergence of new forms of creativity and technology powering the Creative Industries and beyond, CoSTAR provides an amazing opportunity to enable our sector to thrive and navigate the future.
“I'm delighted to join such an amazing team at Royal Holloway and work with the CoSTAR community, as we all create, build, design and imagine this national infrastructure capability together.
“As we open our CoSTAR Facility at Pinewood Studios this autumn, I look forward to championing the work to date and collaborating across the country to realise the scale and ambition of this unique and pioneering opportunity funded by AHRC.”
Professor Julie Sanders, Vice-Chancellor and Principal, Royal Holloway, University of London, added: “It’s a privilege to welcome Sarah to the Royal Holloway team at such an exciting time for the CoSTAR National Lab – which we proudly lead – and indeed, for the creative industries in the UK.
“I’m endlessly amazed by the ambition and creativity of colleagues across Royal Holloway who continue to push the boundaries of the possible, with a real sense of purpose. I am sure Sarah’s vision and leadership will inspire more innovative, collaborative and future-facing work as we move forwards.”
Professor Adrian Woolard, Interim Director and Director of Technology, CoSTAR National Lab said: “We are thrilled to welcome Sarah as our new Director. She is an outstanding leader with the vision, experience and collaborative approach to guide CoSTAR National Lab through its next phase of growth.
“With the opening of our flagship facility at Pinewood Studios later this year and an ambitious programme of research and industry collaboration ahead, I am excited to see Sarah build on the strong foundations already in place and lead the organisation into its next chapter.”
