Karoline Herfurth

• Name — Karoline Herfurth • Born — 22 May 1984 • Birthplace — East Berlin, East Germany • Occupation — Actress • Illustration — Herfurth at Bayerischer Filmpreis 2012

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. She went to a Waldorf school in Berlin and graduated from Ernst Busch Academy of Dramatic Arts. She learned to play the recorder and studied sociology and political sciences.

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

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

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 • | So wie wir hier zusammen sind — Hilde — (short) • 2011 — Promising the Moon — Young Marga Baumanis • | Fortress (2011 German film) — Claudia • 2012 — Zettl (film) — Verena • | Errors of the Human Body — Rebekka • 2013 — Passion — Dani • | Fack ju Göhte — Lisi Schnabelstedt • 2014 — The Pasta Detectives — Rico's mother Tanja Doretti • 2015 — Traumfrauen — Hannah Reimann • | The Pasta Detectives 2 — Rico's mother Tanja Doretti • | Fack ju Göhte 2 — Lisi Schnabelstedt • | Ghosthunters on Icy Trails — Hopkins • 2016 — Rico, Oskar and the Mysterious Stone — Rico's mother Tanja Doretti • | SMS für Dich — Clara — Also director • 2017 — You Are Wanted — Lena Arandt — TV series • 2018 — The Little Witch (2018 film) — The Little Witch • | Beat — Emilia — TV series • 2019 — Sweethearts — Franny — Also director • | The Perfect Secret — Carlotta Keschwari • 2022 — Wunderschön — Sonja — Also director • | Just Something Nice — Karla — Also director • 2024 — A Million Minutes — Vera Küper • 2025 — Wunderschöner — Sonja — Also director

Karoline Herfurth is recorded as actress, screenwriter and director.