Paula Beer (German: [ˈpaʊla ˈbeːɐ̯]; born 23 February 1995 in Mainz) is a German actress. She is most known for her work with Christian Petzold in: Transit (2018), Undine (2020), Afire (2023), and Miroirs No. 3 (2025).
For Frantz (2016) she received the Marcello Mastroianni Award at the 73rd Venice International Film Festival alongside a nomination for the César Award for Best Female Revelation. For Undine (2020), she won the Silver Bear for Best Actress and the. European Film Award for Best Actress.
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Life & career
Early life
Paula Beer grew up in Mainz as an only child. At the age of eight, she took part in a theatre course which, according to her own account, instilled in her a love of acting: "I was very afraid of it, but once on stage, I felt a sense of fulfillment," said Beer. After her family moved to Berlin in 2007, she attended a Montessori school. From the age of twelve, she gained further acting and dance experience with the youth ensemble of Berlin's Friedrichstadt-Palast theatre, where she was a member for four years. In 2013, she graduated from high school and moved to Paris.
Career
She first became known as a teenager for her main role in Chris Kraus' 2010 film Poll. In 2015, Beer made her television debut alongside Sven Gielnik and Joachim Król in Kai Wessel's Pampa Blues. That same year, Beer, along with Jella Haase, Jannis Niewöhner, and Moritz Leu, portrayed four teenagers in Theresa von Eltz 's 4 Kings, who voluntarily spend Christmas in a psychiatric hospital. Critics praised the performances of the four young actors and 4 Kings won the Bronze German Film Award in the Best Feature Film category. In the summer of 2015, Beer attended an acting course at the Drama Summer School of London 's Guildhall School of Music and Drama.
