Karvan began screen acting in 1983 when she appeared in the film Molly.
In 1987, she went on to appear in Phillip Noyce's Echoes of Paradise and appeared alongside Judy Davis in Gillian Armstrong's High Tide that same year.

When she was 17 years old Karvan secured a leading role in the Australian comedy/caper film The Big Steal.

In 1993, Karvan won an FCCA (Film Critics Circle of Australia) Award for Best Actress for her role in The Heartbreak Kid.
She has starred alongside fellow Australian actors such as Guy Pearce in Flynn (1991) (playing the young fiancee of Errol Flynn) and Dating the Enemy (1996), Ben Mendelsohn in The Big Steal (1990) and Hugh Jackman in Paperback Hero (1999).
She was nominated for an AFI Award for Best Supporting Actress in the 1999 film Passion.

In 2006, she had a role in Footy Legends, a film about rugby league.
She also played the role of Hailey's (Joanna Levesque) mother in the American film Aquamarine.
That year, Karvan appeared in Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith as Sola Naberrie, the older sister of Padmé Amidala.
She also filmed scenes for Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones, but her scenes were cut and appear only on the DVD release.

She also co-starred with Jim Caviezel in Nature's Grave, directed by Jamie Blanks in 2008.
In 2009, she voiced in the film $9.99.
She appeared in the 2009 film Daybreakers, a vampire thriller co-starring Ethan Hawke and Sam Neill and filmed on the Gold Coast.
She also starred in 33 Postcards, released in 2011 and Long Weekend.
Karvan began screen acting in 1983 when she appeared in the film Molly. In 1987, she went on to appear in Phillip Noyce's Echoes of Paradise and appeared alongside Judy Davis in Gillian Armstrong's High Tide that same year.
When she was 17 years old Karvan secured a leading role in the Australian comedy/caper film The Big Steal.
In 1993, Karvan won an FCCA (Film Critics Circle of Australia) Award for Best Actress for her role in The Heartbreak Kid. She has starred alongside fellow Australian actors such as Guy Pearce in Flynn (1991) (playing the young fiancee of Errol Flynn) and Dating the Enemy (1996), Ben Mendelsohn in The Big Steal (1990) and Hugh Jackman in Paperback Hero (1999). She was nominated for an AFI Award for Best Supporting Actress in the 1999 film Passion.
In 2006, she had a role in Footy Legends, a film about rugby league. She also played the role of Hailey's (Joanna Levesque) mother in the American film Aquamarine. That year, Karvan appeared in Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith as Sola Naberrie, the older sister of Padmé Amidala. She also filmed scenes for Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones, but her scenes were cut and appear only on the DVD release.
She also co-starred with Jim Caviezel in Nature's Grave, directed by Jamie Blanks in 2008. In 2009, she voiced in the film $9.99. She appeared in the 2009 film Daybreakers, a vampire thriller co-starring Ethan Hawke and Sam Neill and filmed on the Gold Coast. She also starred in 33 Postcards, released in 2011 and Long Weekend.
Claudia Karvan