Petra Schmidt-Schaller is well known to film and television audiences – whether as a former Hamburg "Tatort" detective alongside Wotan Wilke-Möhring, in countless award-winning films such as her role as Isolde Wagner in "Der Wagner-Clan", "Das geteilte Glück", "Wendezeit", in the lead role of Lona Mendt in the crime mini-series "Die Toten von Marnow", or in the ARD film "Polizei".
She appeared alongside her father, Andreas Schmidt-Schaller, in the series "Soko Leipzig" at an early stage in her career, working in the very city where she also completed her acting studies. Also whilst studying, she appeared on stage at the German National Theatre in Weimar, for example as Hermia in "A Midsummer Night’s Dream" and as Juliet in "Romeo and Juliet". After graduating in 2005, she took up a guest engagement at the Städtische Bühnen Osnabrück before turning her attention more towards film.
Now based in Berlin with her daughter, the Magdeburg-born actress has received numerous film awards for her performances, including the German Acting Award in 2012 for her leading role in "Das geteilte Glück" and the German Television Crime Drama Award in 2016 for her performance in the "Tatort" episode "Verbrannt" (Burned). She has appeared in countless film, television and theatre productions and also works as a narrator and voice-over artist, taking part in readings and recording audiobooks.
Together with her colleague Ulrich Noethen, with whom she appears on stage in Dresden in December 2025 and 2026 in Charles Dickens’ "A Christmas Carol", she has previously played leading roles in films such as "Ein fliehendes Pferd" and "Ich will dich".