Paula Kalenberg was born November 9, 1986. Her career started rather haphazardly after she went to a radio-promoted casting. Although she still visited Waldorf school in Bielefeld, Kalenberg became a professional actress and played her first part in Ben Verbong's 2001 TV movie "Hanna, wo bist du?" She then played in TV productions like Stephan Wagner's "Der Stich des Skorpion". In 2005, she debuted on the big screen and played the leading part in Gregor Schnitzler's apocalyptic drama "Die Wolke" ("The Cloud"). In the same year, Kalenberg played together with August Diehl in Leander Haußmann's adaptation of Friedrich Schiller's "Kabale und Liebe". Her next leading role in a feature Film followed in 2008: Alongside Marie-Luise Schramm she played in "Was am Ende zählt" ("Nothing Else Matters") by Julia von Heinz. The film premiered at the Berlin IFF and won a German Film Award for Best Children Film.

After playing the love interest of co-star David Kross in the fantasy film "Krabat" (2008), Kalenberg appeared as a student of legendary Hildegard von Bingen in "Vision - Aus dem Leben der Hildegard von Bingen" (2009). She then portrayed actress Kristina Söderbaum in Oskar Roehler's controversial drama "Jud Süß – Film ohne Gewissen" ("Jew Suss - Rise and Fall")(2010). In 2011, she starred in "Adams Ende" as a young woman who eventually causes the mentally unstable lover (Robert Stadlober) of her best friend to commit an act of violence.

Additionally, she appeared in a string of TV productions, including Xaver Schwarzenberger's "Clarissas Geheimnis" (2012), a drama about the power struggle and intrigues in a wealthy noble family. In the coming-of-age comedy "Wenn Inge tanzt" ("When Inge Is Dancing") (2013), Kalenberg stars as a rigid eco-activist who unexpectedly has to come to the rescue of her high school enemy, an arrogant rock musician.

In the next few years, Kalenberg was seen primarily in television productions. For example, in the ensemble comedy "Mit Burnout durch den Wald" (2014) as a burnt-out permanent intern, in the judicial drama "Der weiße Äthiopier" (2015) as a budding, idealistic lawyer and in the political thriller "Der Fall Barschel" ("The Barschel Case", 2015) as an investigative reporter. In Nana Neul's "Eine Sommerliebe zu dritt" (2016), she entered into a ménage à trois with Florian Panzner and Vladimir Korneev. The thriller "Das Programm" (2016), in which Kalenberg had a leading role as the daughter of a hunted key witness, also received much critical praise. She had a role on the big screen in the eccentric science fiction film "Anhedonia" (2015), in which she starred alongside Robert Stadlober and Blixa Bargeld.

After further roles in TV dramas, such as the sensitive caregiver of a blind young singer in "Song for Mia" (2019), Kalenberg was seen again on the big screen: as a  greenie in the comedy "Enkel für Anfänger" ("Granny Nanny", 2019) and as a Stasi agent in the GDR drama "Nahschuss" ("The Last Execution", 2020), which was released in 2021. In addition, Kalenberg joined the investigative team of the crime series "Letzte Spur Berlin" (ninth season) in 2020.