Evelyn Carow, born 1931 in Berlin, started an apprenticeship in a film laboratory in 1949. In 1952, she became an assistant film editor at DEFA-Studio Babelsberg and was involved in the production of corporate education films. From September 1952 on, she worked in the DEFA-Studio for popular scientific films where she met Heiner Carow. The couple married in 1954.

After a period as an assistant of well-known film editor Putty E. Krafft, Carow who had been sponsored as the youngest member of the studio made her exam as a film editor in late 1953. She then worked as a film editor for the DEFA-Studio for popular scientific films. But in mid-1956, director Gerhard Klein brought her to DEFA-Spielfilmstudio after Klein had seen the short documentary film "Anziehendes" (1955) that Carow had edited in an experimental style.

After changing from popular scientific to feature films, Evelyn Carow became one of the most important film editors of GDR cinema. Her first feature film, "Berlin Ecke Schönhauser" ("Berlin – Schönhauser Corner", 1957), directed by Gerhard Klein, was already considered to be among the most important DEFA films of all time, in particular because of its editing. During the course of her career, Carow closely collaborated with directors such as Konrad Wolf and Frank Beyer. With her love for experiments and keen sense for a film’s rhythm, Carow significantly influenced classic DEFA films like Beyer’s "Fünf Patronenhülsen" ("Five Cartridges", 1960), Wolf’s "Ich war neunzehn" ("I Was Nineteen", 1968), or Klein’s anti-fascist masterpiece "Der Fall Gleiwitz" ("The Gleiwitz Case", 1961).

From 1955 on, Carow edited all of the films of her husband Heiner Carow, including such classics as "Die Legende von Paul und Paula" ("The Legend of Paul and Paula", 1973), one of the most successful DEFA films of all time. In 1980, she was awarded with the German Democratic Republic’s National Film Award for her work for "Sabine Wulff", "Solo Sunny", and "Bis daß der Tod uns scheidet" ("Until Death Do Us Part"). Furthermore, she won the Heinrich Greif prize for her artistic achievements in 1985.

Despite her artistic rank, Evelyn Carow was repeatedly involved in films that interfered with GDR censors. The films "Berlin um die Ecke" (1955) and "Spur der Steine" ("Traces of Stones", 1965), for instance, were banned for their critical stance, while the experimental montage of "Die Russen kommen" ("The Russians Are Coming", 1968) had to be completely re-edited after it had been entirely mutilated and fragmented by the authorities. The dark anti-war film was not released on the movie screen until 20 years later and promptly won a German Democratic Republic’s National Award.

The liquidation of DEFA in 1991 also ended Evelyn Carow’s career in the film business. In 2005, she received the honorary award "Schnitt Preis" for her lifetime achievements at Film +, a forum for film editing and the art of film montage.

Evelyn Carow lives in Potsdam.