Melanie Winiger

For her first role in the motion picture "Achtung fertig Charlie!" (Director: Mike Eschmann) in 2003 Melanie Winiger reaped a great deal of credit. With more than 550'000 tickets sold, this comedy remains one of the most successful motion pictures in Switzerland. After that she settled in Los Angeles for 2 years and attended the Lee Strasberg Theatre Institute. In 2005 Melanie Winiger was nominated for the Undine Award as Best Newcomer for her debut in "Achtung fertig Charlie!" After returning to Switzerland in 2005, she played the female leading part in the TV social drama "Sonjas Rueckkehr" (Director: Tobias Ineichen). Swiss Television broad casted the movie on April, 23, 2006. It reached an audience of 602'000 people, which is corresponding to a market share of 28.7%. In the same year, Melanie Winiger was awarded "Best Actress" with the TV-Star Award. And she was nominated in the category "Show Business" at the "Swiss Awards". 2006 she went back to Los Angeles to shoot the motion picture "Love Made Easy" (Director Peter Luisi). In the English spoken comedy she played the leading part of a stripper opposite the Academy Award Winner Martin Landau. Next, Melanie Winiger did three more movies: 2006 the motion picture "Breakout" (Director: Mike Eschmann), a Hip-Hop youth drama. 2007 the TV-movie "Heldin der Luefte" (Director: Mike Huber) and 2008 the short film "Brandstifter" (Director: Felix von Muralt) together with Carlos Leal. Her first motion picture in her mother tongue Italian, "Sinestesia" (Director: Eric Bernasconi), was first released with considerable success during the 45. Solothurn Filmtage 2010. Melanie Winiger was nominated "Best Actress" for her part as Michela for the Swiss Film Award Quartz 2010. In the German/Swiss TV-film production "Sonntagsvierer" (Director: Sabine Boss) Melanie Winiger is playing an ambitious featured part. The film will still be broad casted in 2010. In 2010 Melanie Winiger played Luna in the German comedy RESTURLAUB (directed by Gregor Schnitzler and shot in Germany and Argentina), and portrayed the murderer Marlene in the Swiss 3D horror film ONE WAY TRIP (directed by Markus Welter). In 2013 she played the female lead in the Hollywood comedy WHO KILLED JOHNNY, directed by Yangzom Brauen. For this part she was nominated Best Actress at the HOBOKEN International Film Festival 2013 in New York. In 2014/2015 and 2016 Melanie Winiger stood in front of the camera in three German TV- and cinema productions. In Marrokko, she performed as co-lead actress Nazima on the side of Rainer Lauterbach in two sequels of the German TV-event-movie SPUREN DER RACHE (Director: Niki Müllerschön). And in the new episodes of the ARD crime series MORDKOMMISSION ISTANBUL, Melanie plays the coroner Derya Güzel on the side of Erol Sander (Director: Marc Brummund). In the spring of 2017 the cult comedy LOMMBOCK comes to the cinemas in Germany, Switzerland and Austria. At the side of Mortitz Bleibtreu and Lucas Gregorowicz Melanie plays the Arab Businesswoman Yasemin (Director: Christian Zübert). Melanie Winiger also appears as a presenter at national and international performances and events. Especially worth mentioning are her appearances in front of an audience of millions for the UEFA - the European Football Association: In 2008 she presented the draw of the European Football Championship in Switzerland and Austria in Lucerne. 2008 and 2009 she inspired the audience on the occasion of the final draw of the UEFA Champions League in Monte Carlo.