Set in the 1950's, the story of a British archeologist mistakenly kidnapped from Iran by the Russians, falsely accused of espionage to cover up the error, and sent to the GULAG camps, was a joint Russian/British effort. Produced by and starring British actor Anthony Andrews, most of the film's original dialogue is in English. Director Aleksandr Mitta was one of the first to realize and address a critical problem of contemporary Russian cinema – the lack of communication with the Western viewer due to the 70 years of Russia's isolation behind the Iron Curtain. The director attempts to bridge the gap in cultural and social associations by inventing his own brand of cinematic Esperanto. This was perhaps the reason why the film enjoyed more success abroad than in its native country. Lost in Siberia was presented at film festivals in Cannes, Chicago and Toronto, and was nominated for a Golden Globe Best Foreign Film award.