Andreas tries to get to know his mother, who died when he was only 5, through letters sent from Germany to his grandmother in Russia.
The director’s parents were Russians of German ancestry who moved to Germany in 1992. Here, their joy of starting a new life in the West gradually turned into tragedy: the mother fell ill with leukaemia and died, leaving behind two young children. The depressed, alcoholic father died soon after and the children were raised by their paternal grandparents. The director is now trying to recover the family's past, using letters, photos and VHS footage - as well as his grandparents’ stories, including the grandparents left behind in the industrial city of Orsk – and to overcome, together with his sister, the trauma of losing both parents in their new adopted country. The film is a story about emigration, about East and West, but also a genuine family portrait, full of emotion and sensitivity.
Original Title:Letters to Orsk
Director:Andreas Boschmann
Sound: Robert Niemeyer
Editor: Anastasya Stolyarov
Cinematographer: Clara Rosenthal, Aleksandra Medianikova, Andreas Boschmann
Producer: Jenny Mathes
Production Company: Film University Babelsberg Konrad Wolf