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Stefan Westerwelle, born in 1980 in Detmold, Germany, gained practical experience in media after graduating from high school at the Bielefeld School of Music and Art. There he attended courses in video, film, photography and fine arts. In 2001, he began studying film/television at the Academy of Media Arts (KHM) in Cologne with professors Jeanine Meerapfel and Matthias Müller. During his studies, he directed several short films and the animated film "Simplicity and Complexity is one", which was shown at the graduation show of Central Saint Martins College of Art and Design during London Fashion Week.
Westerwelle made his feature film debut in 2006 with his graduation project, the intimate romantic story ""Solange Du hier bist" ("As Long As You Are Here") about an elderly lonely man and his young male lover. The film was invited to compete in the Cinéastes du Présent section of the 2006 Locarno Film Festival and received a special mention from the jury. It won the Best Film Award at the Gay & Lesbian Film Festival in Turin and the Jury Prize at the Gay & Lesbian Film Festival in Barcelona. At the 2006 German Short Film Awards, the film was awarded the Special Gold Award for films over 30 minutes.
Together with Jan Rothstein, Westerwelle directed the documentary film "Detlef - 60 Jahre schwul" ("Detlef", 2012), a portrait of the pioneering gay rights activist Detlef Stoffel. The film premiered in the Panorama section of the 2012 Berlinale. One year later, Westerwelle presented his thriller "Lose Your Head" (2013) in the same section.
In 2018, Stefan Westerwelle adapted the novel "Matti und Sami und die drei größten Fehler des Universums " ("Matti and Sami and the Three Biggest Mistakes in the Universe") by Salah Naoura for the screen. The film received the Kids Jury Award for Best Film at the 2019 Luxembourg City Film Festival. In 2020, he directed "Into the Beat – Dein Herz tanzt" ("Into the Beat"), a coming-of-age story set in the world of ballet and street dancers, which won the Best Screenplay Award at the Goldener Spatz Children's Media Festival 2021. Although the film did not perform exceptionally well at the box office, it was successful on Netflix, reaching the top 10 in 67 countries.
Westerwelle's next two films for children and young people also premiered at the Goldener Spatz Children's Media Festival: "Secret Shadows" (2022), which deals with childhood fears and depression, and "Kannawoniwasein!" ("What the Finn?!", 2023), a road movie based on a book by Martin Muser. The latter was officially released in August 2023.