Natalie Scharf(I)

Natalie Scharf was born the daughter of a psychiatrist and neurologist. Her mother was an illustrator of books, her grandfather a professor of physics and mathematics. The family lived on the premises of a psychiatric hospital, led by her father. Thus, Natalie Scharf spent her childhood and teenage years among people who were "different". This left a lasting impression on her and it left her with a sharp psychological perception which she still applies today to shape the characters in her films and shows. In first grade, her teacher asked her: "What do you know about Jesus?" Seven-year-old Natalie replied without hesitation: "Jesus is best friends with Napoleon and Catherine the Great and he lives in ward 9 in my dad's hospital!" When she was 21, Natalie Scharf got married. Her family life is still her anchor in life, she explains. At age 23, she wrote a youth novel which was nominated for the German youth literature award. After that, two more novels followed. She received lucrative offers from the literary industry, but film work turned out to be her great passion. Scharf never went to film school - she is a self-taught professional.

As a producer and writer, she never wanted to be categorized into a certain genre: psychological thriller, comedy, teen horror, romantic comedy, period drama and drama in general, but also dark-humor shows with a social commentary - all of that is in Natalie Scharf's repertoire. The production company she runs follows the conviction that she should not only be responsible for writing scripts and financing projects as a producer, she also assumes responsibility for the entire creative concept. Natalie Scharf's movies and shows are reliably among the most successful German TV formats. Scharf's biggest hit so far is "Dear Vivi" (orig. "Gestern waren wir noch Kinder") which premiered in January 2023. With almost 21 million views in ZDF's online streaming portal, it became the biggest show in terms of klicks in ZDF history, reaching an unprecedented number of streaming views on their portal. ZDF is one of the two major public broadcasting corporations in Germany and when it aired the show on national television, it was once again a huge success with an audience of 5.6 million, equivalent to a 20% market share. To this day, Natalie Scharf has been responsible for the creation of more than 120 films, making her one of the top writers and producers in Germany. Her three adult children are currently enrolled in university.