Ludwig Blochberger

Ludwig Blochberger (born 3 December 1982) is a German actor. He is best known for his appearance in the coming of age movie Summer Storm dealing with issues around sexual orientation. He also appeared on German TV drama programmes including The Old Fox, Tatort and Brittany Mystery. Furthermore he portrayed the Chancellor Helmut Schmidt, in the TV documentary drama Helmut Schmidt - Lebensfragen.

Early life
Ludwig Blochberger was born in 1982 in East Berlin. His father Lutz Blochberger (an actor and director) and his mother Gitta Blochberger (a puppeteer) studied at this time at the Ernst Busch Academy of Dramatic Arts in Berlin. In 1984, the family moved to Dresden, due to the theater engagements of the two parents. In 1990, Ludwig attended the Kreuzschule in Dresden for one year. Then in 1992 they moved to Vienna, and he stayed with the Vienna Boys' Choir until 1995. With this famous Austrian boys choir, he got to know the world early via the joint concert tours (Japan, Australia, USA). In 1995, he had his first theater appearance, he participated in the open air theater in Chur (in Switzerland) in the theater production of Woyzeck. Then he could continue with other performances at the Vienna Burgtheater, among other things, he played Prince Edward III in the production of Edward II, directed by Claus Peymann. In 1999, Ludwig returned to his native Berlin and in 2000, he starred in the multi-award-winning TV three-part mini-series The Manns - Novel of a Century, as the role of 'Klaus Heuser', alongside actor Armin Mueller-Stahl. In the same year, he ended his school career and one year later began his acting studies at the Ernst Busch Academy of Dramatic Arts.

While still a drama student, he was in the cinema production of Summer Storm (directed by Marco Kreuzpaintner) and also in the 2006 Oscar-winning film The Lives of Others (directed by Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck). Then in the TV movie Der Vater meiner Schwester, (directed by Christoph Stark), a family drama in which Ludwig starred together with Katharina Schüttler and Christian Berkel, which premiered at the Munich Film Festival and earned him an Undine Award nomination for Best Young Actor (TV). In 2005, he completed his acting training and worked in three episodes of Tatort, among others, he played a leading role as directed by Niki Stein. In the movie The Last Train (directed by Joseph Vilsmaier & Dana Vávrová), he played the unscrupulous SS Obersturmführer Crewes, who escorted one of the last deportation trains to Auschwitz.

Among his most important theatrical works to date include the productions of director Hans Neuenfels, who in 2005 brought him to Bochum for his world premiere of Schumann, Schubert und der Schnee, an "opera for piano" at the Ruhrtriennale (arts festival in Ruhr). Ludwig played the role of Franz Schubert alongside the baritone singer Olaf Bär in this fictional encounter between the two musical geniuses. For this production, there is also a 60-minute film documentary by director Enrique Sánchez Lansch Sound of the Ruhr. In 2007, Neuenfels cast him in the title role of Baal, written by Bertolt Brecht, at the Münchner Volkstheater. In the same year Ludwig also played for the first time under the direction of his father Lutz Blochberger, in the main role in the world premiere of the tragicomedy Heil Hitler!, by the playwright Rolf Hochhuth at the Academy of Arts, Berlin.

In 2013 Italien film director Liliana Cavani cast him as Pope Innocent III in her film adaptation “Francesco” (2013). Furthermore he portrayed the former German Chancellor Helmut Schmidt in the TV documentary drama “Helmut Schmidt - Questions of Life” directed by Ben von Grafenstein. From 2013 to 2015 Blochberger starred as Riwal in the German crime series “Inspector Dupin” based on the novels by author Jean-Luc Bannalec which were filmed in Brittany (France). From 2015 to 2021 he then starred in the crime series “The Old Fox” as commissioner Tom Kupfer. In “The End of Dreams” (2023) directed by Olga Chajdas he was playing the commandant of the Auschwitz concentration camp, Rudolf Höss. The docudrama series was filmed at the original location in Poland. Since 2024 he is performing a solo concert reading of “The Book of Those Killed by Neil Young” by Navid Kermani where he sings and plays songs by Neil Young live on guitar.

Personal life
Ludwig Blochberger is father of a Portuguese-German son, born in 2021. He is a three time Berlin Marathon finisher.