Sandra Hüller (; born 30 April 1978) is a German actress. She has appeared in German, Austrian, British, French, and American films. She has received various accolades, including two

European Film Awards The European Film Awards (or European Film Academy Awards) have been presented annually since 1988 by the European Film Academy to recognize excellence in European cinematic achievements. The awards are given in 19 categories, of which the mos ...

, a

César Award Cesar or César may refer to: Arts and entertainment * César (film), ''César'' (film), a 1936 French romantic drama * César (film), ''César'' (play), a play by Marcel Pagnolt Places * Cesar, Portugal * Cesar Department, Colombia * Cesar R ...

and three

German Film Award The German Film Award (), also known as Lola after its prize statuette, is the national film award of Germany. It is presented at an annual ceremony honouring cinematic achievements in the Cinema of Germany, German film industry. Besides being ...

s, along with nominations for an

Academy Award The Academy Awards, commonly known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit in film. They are presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) in the United States in recognition of excellence ...

and two

BAFTA Awards The British Academy Film Awards, more commonly known as the BAFTAs or BAFTA Awards, is an annual film award show hosted by the British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) to honour the best Cinema of the United Kingdom, British and Worl ...

. Hüller has played

Anneliese Michel Anna Elisabeth "Anneliese" Michel (21 September 1952 – 1 July 1976) was a Germans, German woman who underwent 67 Exorcism in the Catholic Church, Catholic exorcism rites during the year before her death. She died of malnutrition, for which her ...

in Hans-Christian Schmid's 2006 drama ''

Requiem A Requiem (Latin: ''rest'') or Requiem Mass, also known as Mass for the dead () or Mass of the dead (), is a Mass of the Catholic Church offered for the repose of the souls of the deceased, using a particular form of the Roman Missal. It is ...

'', for which she won the

Silver Bear for Best Actress The Silver Bear for Best Actress () was an award presented at the Berlin International Film Festival from 1956 to 2020. It was given to an actress who has delivered an outstanding performance and was chosen by the International Jury from the fil ...

, and a troubled daughter in

Maren Ade Maren Ade (; born 12 December 1976) is a German film director, screenwriter and producer. Ade lives in Berlin, teaching screenwriting at the Film Academy Baden-Württemberg in Ludwigsburg. Together with Janine Jackowski and Jonas Dornbach, she ...

's 2016 comedy ''

Toni Erdmann ''Toni Erdmann'' is a 2016 comedy drama film, produced, written and directed by Maren Ade. It stars Peter Simonischek as an eccentric man who intrudes upon the life of his daughter, a career-focused business executive played by Sandra Hüller. ...

'', for which she won her first European Film Award for Best Actress. She portrayed Irma Sztáray in Frauke Finsterwalder's 2023 historical black comedy '' Sisi & I''. International recognition came in 2023 for her starring roles in

Justine Triet Justine Triet (; born 17 July 1978) is a French film director, screenwriter, and editor. She has received several awards including an Academy Award, BAFTA Award, a Palme d'Or, three César Awards, and two Golden Globe Awards. Triet started her ...

legal drama Legal drama, also called courtroom drama, is a genre of film and television that generally focuses on narratives regarding legal practice and the justice system. The American Film Institute (AFI) defines "courtroom drama" as a genre of film in wh ...

Anatomy of a Fall ''Anatomy of a Fall'' () is a 2023 French psychological legal drama film, directed by Justine Triet from a screenplay she co-wrote with Arthur Harari. It stars Sandra Hüller as a writer trying to prove her innocence in her husband's death. A ...

'' and Jonathan Glazer's Holocaust drama '' The Zone of Interest''. Her performances in the former won her another European Film Award and a

, in addition to a nomination for the

Academy Award for Best Actress The Academy Award for Best Actress is an award presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS). It has been awarded since the 1st Academy Awards to an actress who has delivered an outstanding performance in a lead ...

Early life and education

Hüller was born in

Suhl Suhl () is a city in Thuringia, Germany, located SW of Erfurt, NE of Würzburg and N of Nuremberg. With its 37,000 inhabitants, it is the smallest of the six urban districts within Thuringia. Together with its northern neighbour-town Zella ...

Thuringia Thuringia (; officially the Free State of Thuringia, ) is one of Germany, Germany's 16 States of Germany, states. With 2.1 million people, it is 12th-largest by population, and with 16,171 square kilometers, it is 11th-largest in area. Er ...

, East Germany, and grew up in Oberhof and Friedrichroda, small villages in the heavily forested state of Thuringia. She is the elder of two children, with parents who were educators; her father taught at a center for apprentices, her mother gave after-school tutoring. Hüller cut off her hair, dyed it red, and joined a drama club as a teenager. "I took part in the theatre workshop at school and really enjoyed it, but I never thought that it could be a profession for me. It was more of a hobby", Hüller said. In high school, Hüller had her stage debut with the 1996 production ''Wir Voodookinder'' directed by Robert Lehniger at the Theatertreffen der Jugend in Berlin. From 1996, Hüller studied acting at the Ernst Busch Academy of Dramatic Arts in Berlin, graduating in 2003. After graduating, Hüller left Berlin and spent two years at a theatre southwest of Leipzig, then moved to Switzerland to join the Theater Basel. Hüller speaks German, English, French and Spanish.

Career

Hüller appeared from 1998 to 2001 at the Theaterhaus

Jena Jena (; ) is a List of cities and towns in Germany, city in Germany and the second largest city in Thuringia. Together with the nearby cities of Erfurt and Weimar, it forms the central metropolitan area of Thuringia with approximately 500,000 in ...

and then for one year at the Schauspiel Leipzig. It was Oliver Held, a playwright from Jena, who recommended her to the Theater Basel in Switzerland, where she appeared until 2006. In 2006, Hüller appeared as Michaela Klingler in Hans-Christian Schmid's film ''

'', for which she won the

56th Berlin International Film Festival The 56th Berlin International Film Festival was held from 9 to 19 February 2006. The festival opened with '' Snow Cake'' by Marc Evans. Digitally restored version of Sam Peckinpah's 1972 film '' Pat Garrett and Billy the Kid'' served as the clos ...

's Award for Best Actress and her first

. In 2009, Hüller appeared as

Elizabeth I Elizabeth I (7 September 153324 March 1603) was List of English monarchs, Queen of England and List of Irish monarchs, Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death in 1603. She was the last and longest reigning monarch of the House of Tudo ...

, in ''Virgin Queen'' at Prater Volksbühne theatre, and in the music-theater-show ''For Love'', directed by Tom Schneider, based on the works of

Kurt Cobain Kurt Donald Cobain (February 20, 1967 – ) was an American musician. He was the lead vocalist, guitarist, primary songwriter, and a founding member of the grunge band Nirvana (band), Nirvana. Through his angsty songwriting and anti-establis ...

and

Courtney Love Courtney Michelle Love (née Harrison; born July 9, 1964) is an American singer, guitarist, songwriter, and actress. A figure in the alternative and grunge scenes of the 1990s, Love has had a career spanning four decades. She rose to promi ...

. In 2012, at the 62nd Berlin International Film Festival, Hüller was – alongside Emily Jacir and David OReilly – part of the jury that chose

's ''Vilaine Fille Mauvais Garçon'' as the festival's best short film. From 2012 to 2015, Hüller was a member of the company at the

Munich Kammerspiele The Munich Kammerspiele (German: Münchner Kammerspiele) is a state-funded German-language theater company based at the ''Schauspielhaus'' on Maximilianstraße (Munich), Maximilianstrasse in the Bavarian capital. The company currently has three ...

, where she worked with director Johan Simons on several plays, notably

Elfriede Jelinek Elfriede Jelinek (; born 20 October 1946) is an Austrian playwright and novelist. She is one of the most decorated authors to write in German and was awarded the 2004 Nobel Prize in Literature for her "musical flow of voices and counter-voices ...

's ''Die Straße. Die Stadt. Der Überfall.'' in 2013. In 2014, Hüller won the

for Best Supporting Actress for her portrayal of Franziska Feldenhoven in Frauke Finsterwalder's film '' Finsterworld''. In 2016, Hüller co-founded the FARN.collective theater group. She accepted the invitation to become a member of Berlin's

Academy of Arts An academy (Attic Greek: Ἀκαδήμεια; Koine Greek Ἀκαδημία) is an institution of tertiary education. The name traces back to Plato's school of philosophy, founded approximately 386 BC at Akademia, a sanctuary of Athena, the go ...

in 2017. In 2018, Hüller became a member of the company at the Schauspiel Bochum, again working with Johan Simons. In 2018, she played the lead role in Simons' adaptation of ''

Penthesilea Penthesilea () was an Amazonian queen in Greek mythology, the daughter of Ares and Otrera and the sister of Hippolyta, Antiope, and Melanippe. She assisted Troy in the Trojan War, during which she was killed by Achilles or Neoptolemus. The ...

'' in Bochum and at the

Salzburg Festival The Salzburg Festival () is a prominent festival of music and drama established in 1920. It is held each summer, for five weeks starting in late July, in Salzburg, Austria, the birthplace of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. Mozart's operas are a focus of ...

. In 2019, Hüller appeared in Johan Simons' award-winning, gender-switched version of ''

Hamlet ''The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark'', often shortened to ''Hamlet'' (), is a Shakespearean tragedy, tragedy written by William Shakespeare sometime between 1599 and 1601. It is Shakespeare's longest play. Set in Denmark, the play (the ...

''. In 2019, Hüller was part of the

69th Berlin International Film Festival The 69th annual Berlin International Film Festival took place from 7 to 17 February 2019. French actress Juliette Binoche served as the Jury President. Lone Scherfig's drama film '' The Kindness of Strangers'' opened the festival. The Golden ...

's jury, chaired by

Juliette Binoche Juliette Binoche (; born 9 March 1964) is a French actress. She has appeared in more than 60 films, particularly in French and English, and has been the recipient of List of awards and nominations received by Juliette Binoche, numerous accolades, ...

. Later in 2019, she appeared in two French films,

's ''

Sibyl The sibyls were prophetesses or oracles in Ancient Greece. The sibyls prophet, prophesied at holy sites. A sibyl at Delphi has been dated to as early as the eleventh century BC by Pausanias (geographer), PausaniasPausanias 10.12.1 when he desc ...

'', where she played film director Mika, and in Alice Winocour's '' Proxima'' as the psychologist Wendy. In 2023, Hüller portrayed Countess Irma Sztáray in Frauke Finsterwalder's historical black comedy film '' Sisi & I'', a retelling of the later years of

Empress Elisabeth of Austria Elisabeth (born Duchess Elisabeth Amalie Eugenie in Bavaria; 24 December 1837 – 10 September 1898), nicknamed Sisi or Sissi, was Empress of Austria and List of Hungarian consorts, Queen of Hungary from her marriage to Franz Joseph I of Austri ...

from the point of view of her

lady-in-waiting A lady-in-waiting (alternatively written lady in waiting) or court lady is a female personal assistant at a Royal court, court, attending on a royal woman or a high-ranking nobility, noblewoman. Historically, in Europe, a lady-in-waiting was o ...

. The film had its world premiere at the 73rd Berlin Film Festival on 19 February 2023, and was released in Germany on 30 March 2023. Hüller was nominated for the

for Best Actress for her performance in the film. In 2023, Hüller starred in two films that premiered in main competition at the

2023 Cannes Film Festival The 76th annual Cannes Film Festival took place from 16 to 27 May 2023. Swedish filmmaker Ruben Östlund served as jury president. With the French film ''Anatomy of a Fall'' winning the Palme d'Or, the festival's top prize, Justine Triet became ...

; the French

'' by

, which won the

Palme d'Or The (; ) is the highest prize awarded to the director of the Best Feature Film of the Official Competition at the Cannes Film Festival. It was introduced in 1955 by the festival's organizing committee. Previously, from 1939 to 1954, the festiv ...

, and the American-British-Polish

Holocaust The Holocaust (), known in Hebrew language, Hebrew as the (), was the genocide of History of the Jews in Europe, European Jews during World War II. From 1941 to 1945, Nazi Germany and Collaboration with Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy ...

drama '' The Zone of Interest'' by Jonathan Glazer, which won the Grand Prix. She won her second European Film Award for Best Actress for ''Anatomy of a Fall'', while also being nominated for ''The Zone of Interest''. She also earned

and

Golden Globe The Golden Globe Awards are awards presented for excellence in both international film and television. It is an annual award ceremony held since 1944 to honor artists and professionals and their work. The ceremony is normally held every Januar ...

nominations for ''Anatomy of a Fall'', as well as BAFTA Film Award nominations for both ''Anatomy of a Fall'' and ''The Zone of Interest''. She also won the

César Award for Best Actress Cesar or César may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''César'' (film), a 1936 French romantic drama * ''César'' (play), a play by Marcel Pagnolt Places * Cesar, Portugal * Cesar Department, Colombia * Cesar River, in Colombia * Cesa ...

for ''Anatomy of a Fall.'' In June 2024, Hüller was invited to become a member of the

Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS, often pronounced ; also known as simply the Academy or the Motion Picture Academy) is a professional honorary organization in Beverly Hills, California, U.S., with the stated goal of adva ...

. Hüller is scheduled to direct ''Penthesile:a:s'' by Marie Dilasser at the Neues Theater Halle/Saale in 2025.

Other activities

In 2024, Hüller appeared in the first-ever advertising campaign of Phoebe Philo's eponymous fashion brand. In July 2024, Hüller christened the ship '' Sea-Eye 5'' for the Sea-Eye NGO in

Ancona Ancona (, also ; ) is a city and a seaport in the Marche region of central Italy, with a population of around 101,997 . Ancona is the capital of the province of Ancona, homonymous province and of the region. The city is located northeast of Ro ...

and criticized the European migration policy in an interview.

Personal life

Hüller considers

as home. Hüller lives in Leipzig-Plagwitz, Germany, with her daughter, who was born in 2011. Hüller is a licensed forklift operator, certified for a role in Thomas Stuber’s '' In the Aisles''.

Filmography

Film

Television

Radio plays

* 2013: Paul Plamper: ''Der Kauf'', produced by

Westdeutscher Rundfunk (; "West German Broadcasting Cologne"), shortened to WDR (), is a German public broadcasting, public-broadcasting institution based in the States of Germany, Federal State of North Rhine-Westphalia with its main office in Cologne. WDR is a const ...

Bayerischer Rundfunk (; "Bavarian Broadcasting"), shortened to BR (), is a public broadcasting, public-service radio and television broadcaster, based in Munich, capital city of the Bavaria, Free State of Bavaria in Germany. BR is a member organization of the ARD (b ...

Deutschlandfunk Deutschlandfunk (DLF, ''Broadcast Germany'') is a public-broadcasting radio station in Germany, concentrating on news and current affairs. It is one of the four national radio channels produced by Deutschlandradio. History Broadcasting in t ...

and Schauspiel Köln * 2016:

Franz Kafka Franz Kafka (3 July 1883 – 3 June 1924) was a novelist and writer from Prague who was Jewish, Austrian, and Czech and wrote in German. He is widely regarded as a major figure of 20th-century literature. His work fuses elements of Litera ...

, '' Das Schloss'', produced by Bayerischer Rundfunk and Hörspiel und Medienkunst * 2017: Paul Plamper: ''Dienstbare Geister'', produced by Westdeutscher Rundfunk, Bayerischer Rundfunk, Deutschlandfunk,

Mitteldeutscher Rundfunk (; "Central German Broadcasting"), shortened to MDR (; stylized as mdr), is the public broadcaster for the federal states of Thuringia, Saxony and Saxony-Anhalt in Germany. Established in January 1991, its headquarters are in Leipzig, wi ...

, Ruhrtriennale and Maxim Gorki Theater * 2021: Kirsten Becken: ''Ihre Geister sehen'', produced by Deutschlandfunk

Audio books

* 2013: Finn-Ole Heinrich: ''Die erstaunlichen Abenteuer der Maulina Schmitt – Mein kaputtes Königreich.'' (Hörcompany) * 2014: Finn-Ole Heinrich: ''Die erstaunlichen Abenteuer der Maulina Schmitt – Warten auf Wunder.'' (Hörcompany) * 2015: Finn-Ole Heinrich: ''Die erstaunlichen Abenteuer der Maulina Schmitt – Ende des Universums'' (Hörcompany) * 2015: Karen Köhler: ''Wir haben Raketen geangelt'' (tacheles!/Roof Music) * 2017: Mariana Leky: ''Was man von hier aus sehen kann'' (tacheles!/Roof Music) * 2018: Wolfgang Herrndorf: ''Bilder deiner großen Liebe: Ein großer Monolog mit Musik'' (tacheles!/Roof Music) * 2019: Mariana Leky: ''Die Herrenausstatterin'' (tacheles!/Roof Music)Elena Witzeck (27 September 2019)
Hüller liest Mariana Leky: Einfach mal die Welt reinlassen
nbsp;''

Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung The (; ''FAZ''; "Frankfurt General Newspaper") is a German newspaper founded in 1949. It is published daily in Frankfurt and is considered a newspaper of record for Germany. Its Sunday edition is the ''Frankfurter Allgemeine Sonntagszeitung'' ( ...

''. * 2019: Mariana Leky: ''Erste Hilfe'' (tacheles!/Roof Music)

Awards and nominations

Besides

Julia Jentsch Julia Jentsch (; born 20 February 1978) is a German actress. She has received awards including the Silver Bear, European Film Award, and Deutscher Filmpreis, Lola. She is best known for ''Sophie Scholl – The Final Days'', ''The Edukators'' and ...

and Paula Beer, Hüller is the only German actress to win both the European Film Award and the

, top honors of the

European Film Academy The European Film Academy is a group of European film director, filmmakers who come together in Berlin on the occasion of the first presentation of the European Film Awards in November 1988. Every year, the European Film Academy honors films an ...

and

Berlin Film Festival The Berlin International Film Festival (), usually called the Berlinale (), is an annual film festival held in Berlin, Germany. Founded in 1951 and originally run in June, the festival has been held every February since 1978 and is one of Europ ...

, in the 21st century. For ''

'' (2023), Hüller became the third German actress to be nominated for the

for Best Actress, and the first German actress to be nominated since

Luise Rainer Luise Rainer ( , ; 12 January 1910 – 30 December 2014) was a German-born film actress. She was the first thespian to win multiple Academy Awards, and the first to win back-to-back; at the time of her death, thirteen days shy of her 105th birt ...

in 1937.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Huller, Sandra 21st-century German actresses Living people 1978 births People from Suhl German film actresses German stage actresses German television actresses Best Actress César Award winners European Film Award for Best Actress winners Best Actress German Film Award winners Best Actress Lumières Award winners Silver Bear for Best Actress winners Ernst Busch Academy of Dramatic Arts alumni Recipients of the Cross of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany Actresses from Thuringia