Anneke Kim Sarnau was born in Elmshorn on February 25, 1972. From 1993 until 1996, she studied acting at the "Hochschule für Musik und Darstellende Kunst" in Stuttgart. In 1998 she joined the renowned Burgtheater in Vienna, but left the ensemble just one year later. Around that time, she began to focus on her TV and film career. Following supporting roles, she made her first major impression on TV playing opposite Hannelore Elsner in the 2001 production "Ende der Saison". She also got rave reviews for her portrayal of a young police officer who is mobbed by her colleagues and eventually commits suicide in Marc Rothemund's "Die Hoffnung stirbt zuletzt" ("Hope Dies Last", 2002). For both performances, she won the Adolf-Grimme-Award, and she was also honoured with the Bavarian TV Award (for "Die Hoffnung stirbt zuletzt"). In 2003, she was part of the ensemble of Stefan Krohmer's "Sie haben Knut" ("They've Got Knut"), a scathing satire of the leftist scene of the early 1980s.

During the following years, Anneke Kim Sarnau had memorable turns in many high-profile TV productions, including Stephan Wagner's "In Sachen Kaminski" (2005) and Nicole Weegmann's award-winning "Ihr könnt Euch niemals sicher sein" (2008). On the big screen, she had a pivotal supporting role in Fernando Meirelles' acclaimed drama "Der ewige Gärtner" ("The Constant Gardener", 2005), played a woman who falls in love with an immigrant in "Fremde Haut" ("Unveiled", 2005) and joined a team of female football players in the comedy "FC Venus– Elf Paare müsst ihr sein" ("FC Venus – Women with Balls", 2006).

Between 2007 and 2008, she had a recurring role as a tough police detective in the comedy series "Dr. Psycho", which garnered her a nomination for the German Television Award. Since 2010, she and Charly Hübner star as police detectives in the Rostock branch of the popular TV series "Polizeiruf 110". For their performance, the duo was nominated for the 2012 Grimme Award. The same year, Anneke Kim Sarnau played a single mother of three daughters, who all try to save the family's snack shack in the comedy "Pommes Essen" ("Patty's Catchup").