“Storm of Love” doctor Katharina Scheuba
These are the “parallels between medicine and acting”
“Storm of Love”: Maxi Neubach (Katharina Scheuba) discusses her study with Dr. Michael Niederbühl (Erich Altenkopf, left).
© ARD/WDR/Christof Arnold
Katharina Scheuba plays a doctor in “Sturm der Liebe”. The fact that this is also her real job often has consequences on the set, she says.
Katharina Scheuba (30), a native of Vienna, is one of the new faces in the TV series “Sturm der Liebe” (weekdays, 3:10 p.m., Das Erste, since 2005). She plays the young doctor Maxi Neubach. In real life, the actress also studied medicine, earned her doctorate and worked as a doctor in various clinics.
Unlike the two film stars Maria Furtwängler (57, Hannover-“Tatort”) and Christiane Paul (50, “Concordia”), who are also medically versed, she has not yet completely given up her career as a doctor. In an interview with spot on news, Katharina Scheuba explains what this dual talent often means on set. She also revealed how she got started as a new member of the long-established “Sturm der Liebe” team.
How did the “Sturm der Liebe” casting go and how did you find out that you had been chosen?
Katharina Scheuba: I was in Vienna, where I was working at the hospital, and was invited to Munich for a test shoot during the week. I drove to Munich in the morning after a 25-hour shift and shot a test scene in the studio. Then I went straight back to Vienna. A few days later I got a call from production.
You describe your character Maxi as a confident, happy person. What characteristics do you personally share with her and what characteristics are very different?
Scheuba: Maxi and I definitely have in common a fundamentally positive attitude to life, an openness to new things and a closeness to the family. Maxi is probably a bit more volatile than me and sometimes gets carried away with displacement activities when he is in the mood. But I am also still getting to know new sides of Maxi. With every new script I get, I get to know her a little better… so it stays exciting for me too.
How was the welcome on the first day of filming for “Sturm der Liebe” – what will you never forget?
Scheuba: On my first day, I was given a short tour of the studio and then went straight to the make-up and costume fitting, where I was warmly welcomed by the team. Tinatin Mohl, our head costume designer, looked after me personally and the former head make-up artist Sabine Utke and our new head make-up artist Antje Schmidt-Linke also gave me a warm welcome in the make-up department, so I immediately felt very comfortable. I also remember the first time I arrived at the stud farm where we were filming. The magical lighting and the many animals that roam around there – a truly magical place.
You also know about medicine in real life. Have you ever corrected something in the scripts or had to help someone on set?
Scheuba: The writers are responsible for the scripts. But of course I’m always happy to help if I’m asked. I’m often asked for medical advice on set, or whether I can take a quick look at this or that, give an injection or treat a wound. So far, this has happened at least once on every set. But I’m happy to do it and am happy when I can help. We’ve only had one real emergency, where someone collapsed behind the scenes on set, and thank God everything turned out well there too.
Maria Furtwängler and Christiane Paul also studied medicine and then pursued careers as actresses. To what extent are they both role models for you?
Scheuba: They are two remarkable women and great actresses. I would love to meet them both and ask them how they balanced these two careers – I’m sure I can still learn a lot.
Would you generally say that this professional combination is a coincidence or are there parallels between medicine and acting?
Scheuba: I’m often asked why I have two such different passions. But I actually see a lot of parallels between medicine and acting. Both are professions that require a lot of empathy: in acting with my role, in medicine with my patients. I try to empathize with another person and understand their behavior. Of course, the great thing about medicine is that you can help people directly and make a big difference in your immediate environment – that’s very enriching. But in film too, as a filmmaker, you potentially have an incredibly large reach and therefore a lot of influence. For me, that also comes with a responsibility. If you use this platform to do good and address important issues, I believe that you can also make a very positive contribution to our society here.
“Sturm der Liebe” is known for its high volume of text. What is the best way to learn it by heart and is there a trick?
Scheuba: Unfortunately, I don’t have a trick. I think, as with everything, you just have to sit down and learn. But it helps me, for example, if I record the texts and then listen to them, because I’m a visual-auditory learner. Over time, you get into a routine and then it goes faster and faster. Nowadays, it’s sometimes enough for me to read through a scene once or twice. But of course that also depends on the complexity of the texts.
What is currently your favorite way to relax after a stressful day of filming?
Scheuba: An evening stroll in the English Garden or a cooking evening with friends.