Bernadette Heerwagen

Bernadette Heerwagen (born 22 June 1977) is a German actress. She began acting aged sixteen and since co-starring in the 1999 production Der Schandfleck', for which she was awarded the Bayerischer Fernsehpreis Sonderpreis in 2000, Heerwagen has gone on to play in a variety of leading and supporting roles in German and Austrian television films, dramas and in European cinema. In 2004 her leading performance in Grüße Aus Kaschmir took her to greater prominence within Germany and France.
She has twice won Best Actress award at the Adolf-Grimme-Preis, in 2005 and 2008, and has won Best Actress at the Bayerischer Fernsehpreis (aka Bavarian TV Awards) in 2000. In 2010 she starred in Die Kommenden Tage alongside Daniel Brühl and earned the nomination for Best Leading Actress at the German Film Awards in 2011. Heerwagen has one brother, Philipp Heerwagen, born in 1983, who is a professional soccer player for the German football team FC St. Pauli.

Early work

After being cast in a short-film in 1992, Heerwagen was spotted by Portuguese film director Miguel Alexandre whilst at the Bavaria Film Studios. Alexandre approached Heerwagen, then aged sixteen, and asked her to play the lead role in his new film for German television. Heerwagen accepted and starred in the title role of her debut film Nana (1995) for ARD and HFF München. After several roles in television films she then went on to star in the TV film Die Aubergers (1997) and in its follow up television series. She also studied acting techniques and drama at Film Breakthrough in Munich. After landing a supporting role in ARD and Bayerischer Rundfunk's television film Liebe und weitere Katastrophen (1999) alongside Senta Berger, Heerwagen was then cast as the co-star in the German television two-part film Der Schandfleck (1999) which brought her to much wider notice as an actress in Germany. Heerwagen progressed to feature in a number of television dramas and series, such as SOKO 5113. In 2000 she won the Special Award for her role in the docu-drama Wir sind da! Juden in Deutschland 1945 at the Bavarian TV Awards along with the director and her co-actor.

Television, film and cinema

In 2004 Heerwagen was cast in the central role of Miguel Alexandre's film Grüße Aus Kaschmir for ARD and TV-60 Filmproduktion, for which she won the Best Actress award at the Adolf-Grimme-Preis in 2005. Heerwagen went on to feature in several guest appearances in the long running German detective series Tartort, and starred as the female protagonist in the English language British film Joy Division starring alongside Ed Stoppard and Bernard Hill. She played a supporting role in the German film Ich bin die Andere and then went on to win the Adolf-Grimme-Preis for Best Actress for a second time in 2008 for her role in the German television film An die Grenze.

She played the central role in Lars Kraume's film Die Kommenden Tage (aka The Coming Days) in 2010, supported by Daniel Brühl, August Diehl and Johanna Wokalek and was nominated for Best Leading Actress at the Deutscher Filmpreis (German Film Awards aka The Lolas) in 2011.

• 1995: Nana (Director: Miguel Alexandre)
• 1996: Zwei Brüder: In eigener Sache (Director: Walter Weber)
• 1996: Sexy Lissy (Director: Peter Ily Huemer)
• 1997: Die heilige Hure (Director: Dominique Othenin-Girard)
• 1997: Das ewige Lied (Director: Franz Xaver Bogner)
• 1997: Lichterkettenspot (Director: Emil Hye-Kundsen)
• 1997: Pechvogel und Glückskind (Director: Katinka Minthe)
• 1997/98: Liebe und weitere Katastrophen (Director: Bernd Fischerauer)
• 1998: Der Schandfleck (Director: Julian Roman Pölsler)
• 1999: Die Nacht der Engel (Director: Michael Rowitz)
• 1999: Zärtliche Sterne (Director: Julian Roman Pölsler)
• 1999: DoppelPack (Director: Matthias Lehmann)
• 2000: Eine öffentliche Affäre (Director: Rolf Schübel)
• 2000: Wir bleiben zusammen (Director: Wolfgang Murnberger)
• 2000: Schutzengel gesucht (Director: Miguel Alexandre)
• 2001: Tatort: Gute Freunde (Director: Martin Gies)
• 2001: Hanna: wo bist Du? (Director: Ben Verbong)
• 2001: Davon stirbt man nicht (Director: Christine Hartmann)
• 2002: Geht nicht gibt's nicht (Director: René Heisig)
• 2003: Das schönste Geschenk meines Lebens (Director: Olaf Kreinsen)
• 2003: Tatort Sonne und Sturm (Director: Thomas Jauch)
• 2003: Der Typ (Director: Patrick Tauss)
• 2003: Danach (Director: Wolfram Emter)
• 2004: Grüße aus Kaschmir (Director: Miguel Alexandre)
• 2005: Ein starkes Team: Ihr letzter Kunde (Director: René Heisig)
• 2005: Tatort: Wo ist Max Grawert? (Director: Lars Kraume)
• 2005: Daniel Käfer und die Villen der Frau Hürsch (Director: Julian Roman Pölsler)
• 2005: Margarete Steiff (Director: Xaver Schwarzenberger)
• 2006: Die Hochzeit meines Vaters (Director: Jobst Oetzmann)
• 2006: Der Feind im Inneren – Joy Division (Director: Reg Traviss)
• 2005: Traumschatten (Director: Steffen Groth)
• 2006: Ich bin die Andere (Director: Margarethe von Trotta)
• 2006: Tatort: Blutschrift (Director: Hajo Gies)
• 2007: An die Grenze (Director: Urs Egger)
• 2006: Mit Herz und Handschellen: Todfeinde (Director: Thomas Nennstiel)
• 2007: Der Novembermann (Director: Jobst Oetzmann)
• 2008: Daniel Käfer und die Schattenuhr (Director: Julian Roman Pölsler)
• 2008: Baching (Director: Matthias Kiefersauer)
• 2008: Leo und Marie: Eine Weihnachtsliebe (Director: Rolf Schübel)
• 2008: Der Tod meiner Schwester (Director: Miguel Alexandre)
• 2009: Durch diese Nacht (Director: Rolf Silber)
• 2009: Crashpoint: 90 Minuten bis zum Absturz (Director: Thomas Jauch)
• 2010: The Coming Days (Director: Lars Kraume)
• 2011: Bauernopfer (Director: Wolfgang Murnberger)
• 2011: Bermuda-Dreieck Nordsee (Director: Nick Lyon)
• 2012: Tatort: Tödliche Häppchen (Director: Josh Broecker)
• 2012: Zum Kuckuck mit der Liebe (Director: Hajo Gies)
• 2012: Die Braut im Schnee (Director: Lancelot von Naso)
• 2012: München 72 – Das Attentat (Director: Dror Zahavi)
• 2012: Mittlere Reife (Director: Martin Enlen)