Fischer was born 1965 in Emden (Germany), based in Berlin.
El Sani was born 1966 in Duisburg (Germany), based in Berlin.

Fischer went on to study visual communication. El Sani majored in film studies. They work in Berlin as an artist unit, and have been collaborating since 1993. They have created video works that cut across a variety of methodologies and media, including documentary, film, photography, and manga, focusing on the history, memories, and remains of architectural structures and places that have lost their original purpose as a result of changes in society and political systems, as well as on the complicated tangle of human sentiments involved. In addition to taking part in residence programs and international exhibitions throughout the world, such as the Gwangju Biennale (1995, 2002, and 2008), Manifesta 4 (2002), and the Istanbul Biennial (2007), Fischer and el Sani have participated in numerous exhibitions in Japan since 1996, including working in Sapporo as associate professors in the School of Art and Design at Sapporo City University from 2007 to 2010. Representative works made in Japan include the video installation 《Spelling Dystopia/Sayonara Hashima》 (2008-2009), which was made using onsite footage from Gunkanjima—literally 'Battleship Island'—which received worldwide acclaim, and the short film 《Narita Field Trip》 (2010), which unravels the history of the farming area in the vicinity of Narita Airport. They have also been addressing the situation in Japan since the 2011 disaster, creating works based on changes in the everyday lives of people after the quake and radiation issues, and exhibited the first in this series of works, 《Spirits closing their eyes》 (2012) at Media City Seoul 2012.