Born in 1975 in Zurich, where he still resides, Samuel Streiff trained as an actor at the Zurich University of the Arts (ZHdK), graduating in 1998. He spent two years performing at the Theater St. Gallen and, in December 1999, received the Armin Ziegler Foundation's Young Actor Encouragement Award. In 2001, he joined the ensemble of the Deutsches Theater in Göttingen.
Since the summer of 2004, he has worked as a freelance actor, performing in numerous productions across Europe. His work includes engagements at theatres in Switzerland and Germany, as well as collaborations with Zurich-based groups such as 400asa, Mass&Fieber, and Fax an Max. In 2011, he took part in an installation-based dramatization by Tim Zulauf, which was presented at the Venice Art Biennale.
In addition to acting, Samuel Streiff works as a voice-over artist for Swiss television and records audiobooks for the Swiss Library for the Blind and Visually Impaired (SBS). He is a cast member of the SRF television series Der Bestatter ("The Undertaker") and of Thom Luz’s When I Die, which continues to tour internationally.