Kerstin Schmidbauer

Kerstin Schmidbauer, born in 1968 over in Nuremberg, Bavaria—yeah, deep German roots—has been making waves behind the scenes for a while now. You’ll find her name popping up both as a producer and writer, which is a bit of a double-threat, honestly. She’s not the type to stick to one genre or vibe, either. Her projects? All over the map. Take “Ein kurzer beschissener Abend” from ’95. The title alone—“A Short Crappy Evening,” if your German’s rusty—should tell you this isn’t your run-of-the-mill, cookie-cutter flick. It’s raw, kind of darkly funny, and doesn’t try to sugarcoat anything. That’s kind of her thing, really: stories that don’t shy away from the messy parts of life. Jump ahead to “The Dumpling Affair” in 2017, and suddenly you’re in a totally different world—quirky, modern, almost whimsical in spots. It’s got this offbeat charm and a sharp, cheeky script that pokes fun at everyday chaos. She’s got a knack for finding the weird in the ordinary, and somehow making it relatable. But then there’s “Marias letzte Reise” from 2005, which just hits differently. Heavy stuff. It’s a drama that digs into the big questions—life, death, what really matters when time’s almost up. Not easy viewing, but it sticks with you. Kerstin Schmidbauer’s work isn’t about flashy blockbusters; it’s about people, the awkward bits, the heartbreak, the laughs. She’s honestly one of those behind-the-scenes powerhouses who keeps things real, no matter what the script throws her way.