Chemodan Films is a partnership, created in October 2005 by Thomas Lahusen (director), Tracy McDonald, and Alexander Gershtein in Toronto, Canada. “Chemodan” (pronounciation key: “ch [like “church”]-eh-mo-dunn”) is the Russian word for “suitcase.” The word symbolizes motion, travel, and the international component of our group. One of the goals of our partnership is to produce documentary films on Russia, other territories of the former Soviet Union, and other parts of the world, which can equip scholars and the larger public with contents that help them to explore the cultural, social, and political complexities of past and present. Chemodan Films privileges topics reflecting on the “deep country,” including geographical and social areas that are not part of the mainstream. Besides producing documentaries, Chemodan Films is also establishing an archival depository of original film material, both contemporary and historical.