Biography
Mareike Engelhardt, born in 1983 in Berlin, initially studied comparative literature, art history, and psychology in Berlin, London, and Paris, while also training in contemporary dance. After filming dancers in the New York underground scene, she began collaborating with international choreographers on multimedia dance works. In 2009, she co-created the multimedia dance theater piece "The Geometry of Separation" in Berlin with Riki von Falkenstein.
Starting in 2009, Engelhardt gained hands-on experience as a directing assistant, particularly in France. She worked on films such as Roman Polanski's "Der Gott des Gemetzels" ("The God of Carnage," FR/DE/PL, 2011), Volker Schlöndorff's "Diplomatie" ("Diplomacy," FR/DE, 2014), and Serge Bozon's "Madame Hyde" (FR, 2017).
Simultaneously, Engelhardt directed several short films starting in 2013. In 2019, she received the screenplay development prize at the French film festival Les Arcs for her screenplay idea "Rabia - Der verlorene Traum" ("Rabia - The Lost Dream"). The story centers on a young French woman who attempts to join the terrorist militia Islamic State in Syria, only to find herself trapped in a women's shelter.
Between 2020 and 2022, Engelhardt contributed to ten scripts for the French political comedy series "Parlement". For the German dramedy web series "Ollewitz" (2022), she directed all five episodes.
In 2022, Engelhardt completed a screenwriting course at the Paris film school La Fémis, where she finished the screenplay for "Rabia - Der verlorene Traum." Filming for the French-German-Belgian co-production began in November of that year. The world premiere took place at the Hofer Filmtage in October 2024. Following its premiere, "Rabia - Der verlorene Traum" earned several festival awards, including the Prix d'Ornano Valenti for Best First Feature at the prestigious Deauville Film Festival. The German theatrical release was in January 2025.