Karoline Herfurth (German: [kaʁoˈliːnə ˈhɛʁfʊʁt] ; born 22 May 1984) is a German actress.

Karoline Herfurth
Herfurth at the Berlinale 2024
Born (1984-05-22) 22 May 1984 (age 40)
OccupationActress
Herfurth at Bayerischer Filmpreis 2012

Life and career

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Herfurth was born in East Berlin, East Germany, the daughter of a psychologist mother and a geriatric nurse practitioner father. Her parents divorced when she was two years old. She grew up in Berlin with a brother and five half-brothers and -sisters.[1] She went to a Waldorf school in Berlin and graduated from Ernst Busch Academy of Dramatic Arts.[2] She learnt to play the recorder and studied sociology and political sciences.[3]

Career

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Herfurth had her first role in a TV series at age ten, and her first part in a movie in 2000, when she was fifteen. She has held several parts as a teenager in German movies such as Mädchen, Mädchen (2001) and Big Girls Don't Cry (2002) and leading parts both in TV productions and independent German films. For her part as Lilli Richter in Caroline Link's film A Year Ago in Winter, she received the Bavarian Film Award for best young actress in 2009.[4]

Herfurth gave her international debut in 2006 in Perfume: The Story of a Murderer. In this adaptation of Patrick Süskind's best-selling novel Das Parfum, she played the "Plum Girl", the first victim of Jean-Baptiste Grenouille. In 2008, she co-starred with Kate Winslet and Ralph Fiennes in the Academy Award Best Picture-nominee The Reader.[5]

She directed her first feature-length film SMS für Dich in 2016.

Personal life

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Herfurth has spoken out opposing the right-wing Pegida movement in Germany.[6]

Filmography

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Film and television
Year Title Role Notes
2000 Küss mich, Frosch Mary
Crazy Anna
2001 Mädchen, Mädchen Lena titled Girls on Top in USA
2002 Big Girls Don't Cry Steffi
2003 Mein Name ist Bach Prinzessin Amalie
2004 Anemonenherz (short)
Mädchen, Mädchen 2 - Loft oder Liebe Lena titled Girls on Top 2 in USA
2005 Offside Hayat
2006 Perfume: The Story of a Murderer The Plum Girl
2007 Peer Gynt Solvejg TV
Pornorama Luzi
2008 A Year Ago in Winter Lilli Richter
The Reader Marthe
2009 Berlin 36 Gretel Bergmann
2010 Vincent Wants to Sea Marie
We Are the Night Lena[7]
So wie wir hier zusammen sind Hilde (short)
2011 Promising the Moon [de] Young Marga Baumanis
Fortress [de] Claudia
2012 Zettl [de] Verena
Errors of the Human Body Rebekka
2013 Passion Dani
Fack ju Göhte Lisi Schnabelstedt
2014 The Pasta Detectives [de] Rico's mother Tanja Doretti
2015 Traumfrauen Hannah Reimann
The Pasta Detectives 2 [de] Rico's mother Tanja Doretti
Fack ju Göhte 2 Lisi Schnabelstedt
Ghosthunters on Icy Trails Hopkins
2016 Rico, Oskar and the Mysterious Stone [de] Rico's mother Tanja Doretti
SMS für Dich Clara Also director
2017 You Are Wanted Lena Arandt TV series
2018 The Little Witch [de] The Little Witch
Beat Emilia TV series
2019 Sweethearts Franny Also director
The Perfect Secret [de] Carlotta Keschwari
2022 Wunderschön Sonja Also director
Just Something Nice [de] Karla Also director

References

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  1. ^ Christine Koischwitz (October 2007). "Karoline Herfurth: Hoch!". Park Avenue.de (in German). Archived from the original on 6 January 2012. Retrieved 28 February 2012.
  2. ^ Nina Anika Klotz. "Karoline Herfurth, Biografie". Gala (in German). Archived from the original on 6 September 2011. Retrieved 28 February 2012.
  3. ^ Mareen Linnartz (17 November 2008). ""Ich musste fast jeden Tag weinen"". Frankfurter Rundschau (in German). Retrieved 4 December 2021.
  4. ^ "Gala in München: Bayerischer Filmpreis geht an "Baader Meinhof Komplex"". Der Tagesspiegel (in German). 16 January 2009. Retrieved 28 February 2012.
  5. ^ Karoline Herfurth at Hollywood.com
  6. ^ "Germany Pegida protests: 'Islamisation' rallies denounced". BBC News. 6 January 2015.
  7. ^ 'Inside' Team Unloads Full Trailer for 'We Are the Night'!!
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