To Moscow with IKEA (Mit IKEA nach Moskau) There are over 150 IKEA branches all over the world. And now Russia has one of its own. On 22 March 2000, Russia's first IKEA opened its doors in the Moscow suburb of Khimki. Manuela and Ulf, both loyal IKEA employees, meet and fall in love in an IKEA store in Berlin. They leave their families and decide to go to Moscow. Lost in a world of heavy old furniture, they feel like pioneers bringing Russia its first taste of "brighter living". Ulf's and Manuela's entire lives are shaped by the world of IKEA - from the furniture in their apartment to their friends and colleagues. However, their new beginning has its difficulties. Manuela's son has problems adjusting to his new life in Moscow; Ulf dreams of one day reuniting the family with the children who were left behind in Germany. But for Manuela and Ulf, the big day has arrived. After an entire year of planning, 37,500 people come to the grand opening - breaking all records in IKEA history. The film observes the chaos of the first day and accompanies Muscovite families home with their purchases to watch the well- known IKEA assembly procedure. The world of IKEA, it seems, is just what every Russian has been waiting for. Michael Chauvistré was born in 1960 in Aachen. He studied History and Philosophy in Aachen and Constance and Film at the Academy for Television & Film in Munich (HFF/M). In 1988, he founded the production company Happy Endings Film and began producing and directing his own films, including: the shorts Eine zufaellige Begegnung (1989), Amore (1990), and the documentaries Mal sehen, was draus wird (1990), Die Zeit, die laeuft (1992), Wenn dich keiner sieht und keiner hoert (1993), Barbara und Fenja (1993), Klein Hundorf (1993), and Schau mich nicht so boese an (1997), Pax (1999) - a short story episode in the feature film Midsommar Stories, and To Moscow with IKEA (Mit IKEA nach Moskau, 2001). Genre Family Category Documentary Cinema Year of Production 2001 Director Michael Chauvistré Screenplay Michael Chauvistré Directors of Photography Michael Chauvistré, Stefan Tolz Editors Dorothea Bruehl, Felix Hass Music by Claudius Dreilich, Georg Fischer, Christoph Seil Production Company KOPPFILM/Potsdam-Babelsberg, in co-production with Happy Endings Film, Munich, KOPPMEDIA/Halle (Saale), ORB/Potsdam, ZDF/Mainz Principal Cast Manuela Geelhaar Length 94 min, 2,572 m Format Digi-Beta Blowup 35 mm, Color, 1:1.85 Original Version German/English/Russian Subtitled Versions German/English Sound Technology Dolby SR Festival Screenings Ophuels-Festival Saarbruecken 2001, St. Petersburg 2001, Gothenburg 2002 With backing from FilmFernsehFonds Bayern, Mitteldeutsche Medienfoerderung German Distributor Piffl Medien/Berlin World Sales Happy Endings Film Michael Chauvistré Oefelestrasse 4 81543 Munich/Germany phone +49-89-65 11 53 66 fax +49-89-65 11 53 68 email: happy-endings@t-online.de