Import Export
Encyclopedia
Import Export is an Austrian film
by the director Ulrich Seidl
from 2007. It was nominated to the Palme d'Or
in the 2007 Cannes Film Festival
and won the Grand Prix - Golden Apricot reward in Yerevan International Film Festival
. The film was shot in Vienna
, Ukraine
, Romania
, the Czech Republic
and Slovakia
from 2005 until May 2007, using 16mm and 35mm lenses. Simultaneously, the film follows a nurse from Ukraine
searching for a better life in the West and an unemployed security guard from Austria
heading East for the same reason.
woman from Eastern Ukraine, who lives with her mother and has a child. Her job as a nurse does not pay well enough for her to support herself and her baby, and she gets a second job doing internet pornography
. She eventually leaves her homeland and travels to Vienna
, Austria
where she finds a job as a housekeeper at a rich family's home, where she also lives. However, the woman of the family suspects her of stealing and sacks her. She is then employed as a cleaner at a geriatric hospital. There, she strikes up a relationship with an elderly man named Erich and he asks her to marry him. She accepts, as she knows this will gain her Austrian citizenship. However, Erich dies of a heart attack before they can marry.
Pauli is a young man from Vienna
, Austria
who lives with his mother and stepfather. He owns a large dog named Caeser and trains in martial arts
. He works as a security guard
at a shopping complex, but is sacked after a gang of drunken Turks
cuff him with his own handcuffs and strip him of his clothes. His girlfriend breaks up with him as she is afraid of his dog, and he owes money to a number of people including his stepfather, Michael. Michael then takes him along on a job in Ukraine
setting up video gambling machines. On the way there, they stop at an impoverished Roma Gypsy neighbourhood in Košice
, Slovakia
where Pauli tries to 'hire' a prostitute. He fails to agree on a price with the Roma pimp
s, however, and they chase him back to his van. When they arrive in Uzhhorod
, Ukraine, they rent a hotel room and try to pick up girls at a bar. When Pauli goes back to his room to borrow money from Michael to pay his tab, he finds that Michael has a prostitute. Michael insists Pauli watches him humiliate the prostitute before he can leave. The next day, Pauli leaves Michael's company and searches for work at a local market, where he fails to find any. The last we see of him is when he is walking along a long country road, hitchhiking
back to the West.
Cinema of Austria
Austria has had an active cinema industry since the early 20th century. Sascha Kolowrat-Krakowsky was among the Austrian pioneers of this art. Several Austrians pursued a career in pre-Nazi Germany and later in the United States, among them Fritz Lang, Josef von Sternberg, Billy Wilder, Fred...
by the director Ulrich Seidl
Ulrich Seidl
Ulrich Seidl is an Austrian film director, writer and producer.-Selected filmography:* 1990 Good News* 1992 Loss Is to Be Expected * 1995 Animal Love ...
from 2007. It was nominated to the Palme d'Or
Palme d'Or
The Palme d'Or is the highest prize awarded at the Cannes Film Festival and is presented to the director of the best feature film of the official competition. It was introduced in 1955 by the organising committee. From 1939 to 1954, the highest prize was the Grand Prix du Festival International du...
in the 2007 Cannes Film Festival
2007 Cannes Film Festival
The 2007 Cannes Film Festival, the sixtieth, ran from 16 to 27 May 2007. Wong Kar-wai's My Blueberry Nights opened the festival, and Denys Arcand's The Age of Ignorance closed...
and won the Grand Prix - Golden Apricot reward in Yerevan International Film Festival
Yerevan International Film Festival
Yerevan International Film Festival "Golden Apricot" is a Yerevan-based annual film festival. The objectives of the festival are "to present new works by the film directors and producers in Armenia and foreign cinematographers of Armenian descent and to promote creativity and originality in the...
. The film was shot in Vienna
Vienna
Vienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre...
, Ukraine
Ukraine
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...
, Romania
Romania
Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...
, the Czech Republic
Czech Republic
The Czech Republic is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Poland to the northeast, Slovakia to the east, Austria to the south, and Germany to the west and northwest....
and Slovakia
Slovakia
The Slovak Republic is a landlocked state in Central Europe. It has a population of over five million and an area of about . Slovakia is bordered by the Czech Republic and Austria to the west, Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east and Hungary to the south...
from 2005 until May 2007, using 16mm and 35mm lenses. Simultaneously, the film follows a nurse from Ukraine
Ukraine
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...
searching for a better life in the West and an unemployed security guard from Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
heading East for the same reason.
Plot
Olga is a UkrainianUkraine
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...
woman from Eastern Ukraine, who lives with her mother and has a child. Her job as a nurse does not pay well enough for her to support herself and her baby, and she gets a second job doing internet pornography
Internet pornography
Internet pornography is pornography that is distributed by means of various sectors of the Internet, primarily via websites, peer-to-peer file sharing, or Usenet newsgroups...
. She eventually leaves her homeland and travels to Vienna
Vienna
Vienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre...
, Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
where she finds a job as a housekeeper at a rich family's home, where she also lives. However, the woman of the family suspects her of stealing and sacks her. She is then employed as a cleaner at a geriatric hospital. There, she strikes up a relationship with an elderly man named Erich and he asks her to marry him. She accepts, as she knows this will gain her Austrian citizenship. However, Erich dies of a heart attack before they can marry.
Pauli is a young man from Vienna
Vienna
Vienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre...
, Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
who lives with his mother and stepfather. He owns a large dog named Caeser and trains in martial arts
Martial arts
Martial arts are extensive systems of codified practices and traditions of combat, practiced for a variety of reasons, including self-defense, competition, physical health and fitness, as well as mental and spiritual development....
. He works as a security guard
Security guard
A security guard is a person who is paid to protect property, assets, or people. Security guards are usually privately and formally employed personnel...
at a shopping complex, but is sacked after a gang of drunken Turks
Turkish people
Turkish people, also known as the "Turks" , are an ethnic group primarily living in Turkey and in the former lands of the Ottoman Empire where Turkish minorities had been established in Bulgaria, Cyprus, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Georgia, Greece, Kosovo, Macedonia, and Romania...
cuff him with his own handcuffs and strip him of his clothes. His girlfriend breaks up with him as she is afraid of his dog, and he owes money to a number of people including his stepfather, Michael. Michael then takes him along on a job in Ukraine
Ukraine
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...
setting up video gambling machines. On the way there, they stop at an impoverished Roma Gypsy neighbourhood in Košice
Košice
Košice is a city in eastern Slovakia. It is situated on the river Hornád at the eastern reaches of the Slovak Ore Mountains, near the border with Hungary...
, Slovakia
Slovakia
The Slovak Republic is a landlocked state in Central Europe. It has a population of over five million and an area of about . Slovakia is bordered by the Czech Republic and Austria to the west, Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east and Hungary to the south...
where Pauli tries to 'hire' a prostitute. He fails to agree on a price with the Roma pimp
Pimp
A pimp is an agent for prostitutes who collects part of their earnings. The pimp may receive this money in return for advertising services, physical protection, or for providing a location where she may engage clients...
s, however, and they chase him back to his van. When they arrive in Uzhhorod
Uzhhorod
Uzhhorod or Uzhgorod is a city located in western Ukraine, at the border with Slovakia and near the border with Hungary. It is the administrative center of the Zakarpattia Oblast , as well as the administrative center of the surrounding Uzhhorodskyi Raion within the oblast...
, Ukraine, they rent a hotel room and try to pick up girls at a bar. When Pauli goes back to his room to borrow money from Michael to pay his tab, he finds that Michael has a prostitute. Michael insists Pauli watches him humiliate the prostitute before he can leave. The next day, Pauli leaves Michael's company and searches for work at a local market, where he fails to find any. The last we see of him is when he is walking along a long country road, hitchhiking
Hitchhiking
Hitchhiking is a means of transportation that is gained by asking people, usually strangers, for a ride in their automobile or other road vehicle to travel a distance that may either be short or long...
back to the West.
Cast
- Ekateryna Rak: Olga
- Paul Hofmann: Pauli
- Michael ThomasMichael Thomas (actor)Michael Thomas is a British theatre actor who has worked on the English stage and screen for the past forty years. His career has seen him work for the Old Vic, the National Theatre, and the RSC on numerous occasions....
: Michael, Pauli's stepfather - Natalja Baranova: Olga's friend (Ukraine)
- Natalja Epuraneu: Olga's friend (Vienna)
- Maria Hofstätter: Sister Maria
- Georg Friedrich: Orderly Andi
- Erich Finches: Erich Schlager
- Dirk Stermann: Assessment trainer