Žbanić went to local schools before attending the Academy of Performing Arts in Sarajevo, where she got a degree.

[citation needed] After her return to Bosnia and Herzegovina, she founded the artists' association "Deblokada" (meaning "de-blocking.

[2] Her work has been seen around the globe, screened in film festivals and shown at exhibitions such as the Manifesta 3 in Slovenia in 2000, the Kunsthalle Fridericianum in Kassel in 2004, and the Istanbul Biennale in 2003.

[13] Žbanić strives to create characters that are not just "black and white," as real people are not that simple.

[13] In 2017, Žbanić signed the Declaration on the Common Language of the Croats, Serbs, Bosniaks and Montenegrins.