Katja Benrath was born in 1979 in Erbach, Germany, and grew up in Stockstadt am Main and Lübeck. After training as a theatrical tailor at the Wuppertal Bühnen and studying acting and singing at the Vienna Conservatory, she moved behind the camera in 2009. Her short films “Puppenspiel” and “No One Pukes in Heaven” won multiple international awards. Her graduation film “Watu Wote” (2016) became an international success, earning the Peace Prize of German Film, a Gold Student Academy Award, and an Academy Award nomination. In 2018, she directed her debut feature “Rocca Changes the World,” which premiered in German cinemas in 2019.