Katrin Sass (, for a time Katrin Saß) is a German actress. She became known internationally for playing the idealistic socialist mother Christiane Kerner in the 2003 tragicomedy Good Bye, Lenin! Biography She was born in Schwerin, in the former East Germany, which is now the capital of the Federal State of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern. Before German reunification, she was a well-known film and stage actress in the German Democratic Republic. She made her film debut at age 23 in the 1979 film , where she portrayed a disillusioned young wife. She won the Silver Bear for Best Actress at the 32nd Berlin International Film Festival for her role in the 1981 film Bürgschaft für ein Jahr. In 2011, she appeared in the music video of "Wir Sind am Leben" by the Berlin music duo Rosenstolz. Sass said the GDR required her to spell her name with a "ß" presumably because "Sass" was associated with the Nazi SA and SS. Filmography (1979) Bürgschaft für ein Jahr (1981) The House on the River (1986) Fallada: The Last Chapter (1988) (2001) Good Bye, Lenin! (2003) (with Daniel Brühl, Chulpan Khamatova, Michael Gwisdek and Alexander Beyer) (2006) The Silence (2010) Weissensee (2010, 2013, 2015) Back on Track (2013) '' (Television series, 2014, 2016, 2017, 2019, 2020) References External links 1956 births Living people People from Schwerin German film actresses European Film Awards winners (people) Best Actress German Film Award winners Rostock University of Music and Theatre alumni Silver Bear for Best Actress winners 20th-century German actresses 21st-century German actresses