“Our uniquely human passion for barter and trade is what sets us apart from the rest of the animal kingdom.” Ebay Bible, page 3

– a

A FILM BY MARCUS VETTER AND STEFAN TOLZ CINEMATOGRAPHY SYLVIO CLAUSSNER THOMAS RIEDELSHEIMER HOLGER SCHÜPPEL DIETER STÜRMER EDITING ANNETTE MUFF MARC SCHUBERT STEFAN TOLZ SASKIA METTEN LOCATION SOUND THOMAS SCHWARZ MARCUS VETTER MUSIC PAUL SHIGIHARA SOUND DESIGN MARILYN JANSSEN RE-RECORDING MIX TOM DOKOUPIL LINE PRODUCER MARKUS BREIMAIER EXECUTIVE PRODUCER STEFAN TOLZ COMMISSIONING EDITORS HANS-ROBERT EISENHAUER THOMAS SCHREIBER DEVELOPED IN COOPERATION WITH DISCOVERY CAMPUS MASTERSCHOOL AND WITH THE SUPPORT OF A GERD RUGE SCHOLARSHIP ASSOCIATE PRODUCER FILMPERSPEKTIVE, MARCUS VETTER PRODUCER BY FILMQUADRAT IN CO-PRODUCTION WITH ZWEITES DEUTSCHES FERNSEHEN (ZDF) NORDDEUTSCHER RUNDFUNK (NDR) AND IN COOPERATION WITH ARTE WITH THE PARTICIPATION OF TÉLÉVISION SUISSE ROMANDE (TSR) AND SBS AUSTRALIA SUPPORTED BY FILMSTIFTUNG NORDRHEIN-WESTFALEN, GERMAN FEDERAL FILM BOARD (FFA), FEDERAL GOVERNMENT COMMISSIONER FOR CULTURE AFFAIRS AND THE MEDIA (BKM)

www.tradersdreams.com Scotland, Isle of Skye

PRESS REVIEWS

„Vetter and Tolz give us intimate impressions from the homes CULTURE AFFAIRS AND THE MEDIA (BKM) of the dreamers who auction, and take an investigative look GERMANY 2007, 83 MIN, COLOR, 1:1,85, DOLBY DIGITAL into the not at all dreamy business conduct of e-auction moguls. The high entertainment value of ‚Traders‘ Dreams‘ © 2007 FILMQUADRAT GMBH clearly comes from the careful choice and sensitive observa- tion of the people it portrays – including some whimsically comical situations.“ kulturjournalist.de

„In their search for the nation- and culture-transcending phenomena eBay, documentary fi lmmakers Marcus Vetter and Stefan Tolz took off on a trip around the world. Every- where they went, they encountered people looking to fulfi ll their dreams, large and small, through eBay – with varying degrees of success... ‚Traders‘ Dreams‘ exposes the dream of a system without losers as a pretty chimera. More than any- thing, eBay‘s marketing power is the reason many choose to continue believing in prosperity as a self-made entrepreneur. But – as the fi lm‘s examples show – even with eBay, success cannot be planned. (...) Vetter and Tolz create tension by cleverly juxtaposing scenes showing an eBay community driven by euphoria and the de- Kathie Campell and her dog Brandy, Isle of Sky sire for action with the everyday experiences of other eBay users. On the one hand, we fi nd intoxication and a seemingly The Isle of Skye – situated off the west coast of Scotland, untainted bliss, and here in reality a diffi cult struggle sur- known as Eilean a’Cheò in Gaelic, or the „Island of Mist.“ rounding every action and every sale. Two worlds, and both The island‘s capital is Portree; its highest elevation is of them are eBay.“ Programmkino.de the 993-meter-high Sgurr Alasdair. Of its roughly 10,000 inhabitants, a large portion still speaks Scottish Gaelic. TRADERS‘ DREAMS – A journey into the eBay World A fi lm by Marcus Vetter, Stefan Tolz Great Britain, where eBay has been in existence since 1999, is eBay‘s third largest market following the USA CINEMATOGRAPHY SYLVIO CLAUSSNER, THOMAS RIEDELSHEIMER, and Germany. In 2006, eBay users in Britain totaled HOLGER SCHÜPPEL, DIETER STÜRMER – EDITING ANNETTE MUFF, MARC 11.5 million, a range representing 42.3% of all active SCHUBERT, STEFAN TOLZ, SASKIA METTEN – LOCATION SOUND THOMAS Internet users in January of that year. The total number SCHWARZ, MARCUS VETTER – MUSIC BY PAUL SHIGIHARA – SOUND of products offered for sale on eBay.co.uk consistently DESIGN MARILYN JANSSEN – RE-RECORDING MIX TOM DOKOUPIL exceeds 3 million. – LINE PRODUCER MARKUS BREIMAIER – EXECUTIVE PRODUCER STEFAN TOLZ – COMMISSIONING EDITORS HANS-ROBERT EISENHAU- Every third British Internet user visits the eBay portal ER, THOMAS SCHREIBER – PRODUCER BY FILMQUADRAT – IN CO-PRO- at least once a month and browses through an average DUCTION WITH ZWEITES DEUTSCHEN FERNSEHEN (ZDF), NORDDEUTSCHER of 280 offers over the course of two hours. That means RUNDFUNK (NDR) – IN COOPERATION WITH ARTE – WITH THE that British people spend more time on eBay than going PARTICIPATION OF TÉLÉVISION SUISSE ROMANDE (TSR), SBS AUSTRA- to the cinema. In 2004, sales of products via eBay ac- LIA – SUPPORTED BY FILMSTIFTUNG NORDRHEIN-WESTFALEN, GERMAN counted for $3.7 billion in total revenues. FEDERAL FILM BOARD (FFA), FEDERAL GOVERNMENT COMMISSIONER FOR “If you’re a dealer, and I’ve been a dealer all my life, I buy and sell all my life, you got to fi nd an outlet-and here it is! There is no use having a shop. You don’t need a shop. There is 10 Million people registered with eBay in the UK. If you have 10 Million people you can present your items to, you know…that’s fi ne. This is evolution. You either go with it, or you get left behind. I’m not a dinosaur. I go with it.” Spike, Powerseller Traders‘ DREAMS – a

„Traders’ Dreams“ interweaves personal eBay stories with a CONTENT SUMMARY global fi nance thriller in a surprising and entertaining fash- ion. It‘s about the philosophy behind the „eBay system“ and how eBay effects the future of the trading business globally. The world as a global department store: five astounding How close are we to realizing the phenomenal dream of a stories from different corners of the globe, stories of win- system in which everyone can win? ners and losers, of trading and hoping, of success and promise – and an illuminating expedition into the heart of eBay headquarters...

More than 200 million people use eBay, the largest Internet auction house worldwide. Each day, hundreds more join those ranks, ready to change their lives and find happiness in the world of virtual commerce.

Filmmakers Marcus Vetter and Stefan Tolz spent more than a year observing people in their attempts to fulfi ll their eBay dreams: in Borna in Saxony, Germany, on the Isle of Skye in Scotland, in a village in the Mexican desert – the idea of a di- rect marketplace where anyone can buy and sell at anytime is listing items on eBay, Borna, Saxony popular throughout the world.

In California, we meet „Uncle Griff,“ the legendary host of the eBay Radio Show and author of the eBay Bible, who embodies the PR strategy of the concern like nobody else. The camera follows Griff during eBay Live, the annual world congress of the „community“ and thus provides an informative look behind the scenes. In Hangzhou on the east coast of China, a successful businessman named Jack Ma and his company Alibaba have already eclipsed the Chinese division of eBay – and now he wants to compete with the Americans on the world market. Spike and Archie, Isle of Skye eBay has never had a real competitor. So for us it’s like a sport, it’s like playing against Michael Jordan. There is a saying in Chinese: Know yourself and know your competitor. We know ourselves and we know eBay. eBay knows itself but they don’t know us. Porter Erisman, Pressechef alibaba.com

SYNOPSIS

„Traders‘ Dreams“ tells the story of people from different Their experiences, their defeats and their successes form the countries who change their lives in order to become rich and basis of a surprising and entertaining journey of discovery happy through the worldwide fever for Internet auctions. By into the seemingly boundless universe of worldwide Internet doing so, they are responding to the promises of an American commerce. company that turns local fl ea markets into global business and which sells it‘s expansion strategy as the economic de- Many New Economy ideas have vanished as quickly as the mocratization of the world: The power of all of us. dotcom companies that spawned them. eBay, on the other hand, has not only survived but has grown steadily to be- In Germany, Scotland and Mexico – with detours to corporate come a billion-dollar corporation and the world‘s biggest In- headquarters in China and the USA – Filmmakers Marcus ternet auction house. Today, more than 200 million people Vetter and Stefan Tolz observe individuals in their attempts use the company‘s colorful portal as a trading platform. The to realize their own eBay dreams. fascination eBay inspires spans every culture.

And though some of us only know it as a fl ea market or col- lector‘s forum, for many it long ago became a way of life. Through perfect marketing, eBay has already persuaded half a million people worldwide to create an existence for them- selves as so-called Powersellers. Each day, hundreds of small business enterprises join those ranks, hoping to achieve hap- piness with eBay. They do so at their own risk; only eBay itself is guaranteed profi ts through its insertion fees.

The Thurm family in the city of Borna in Saxony, Germany, attempts to establish a new business idea in the face of un- Jack Ma, Alibaba / Taobao employment: They start an Internet agency to auction prod- With over 120 Internet users, China is the second largest ucts from small local businesses on eBay. They attend eBay and most dynamic Internet market in the world. The seminars, consult tips from the Online University, work out leader in the fi eld of online auctioning is Alibaba‘s Tao- business plans and test packing materials. The family‘s sons bao platform. eBay, which was only able to reach around don‘t always agree with their parents, but together, they al- 3% of Chinese Internet users, closed its own portal in ways fi nd a solution – whether it‘s for the costume shop or China at the end of 2006 and has since been cooperating the basket of regional products. Now they are wondering if with Chinese Internet service provider Tom Online. all their patient work, the countless telephone calls and all the new product ideas will pay off for them in the not too In the late 1990s, Jack Ma used a loan of $2000 to found distant future... his fi rst Internet company, China Pages. In 1999, he started the B2B online marketplace Alibaba.com and in On the Scottish Isle of Skye, Powerseller Spike spends nights 2003 an auction platform called Taobao, developed with at his computer, buying and selling on eBay – it‘s simultane- eBay as a model. In 2005, Yahoo bought a 40% share of ously a hobby and a job on the side. Archie Campbell, who Alibaba for one billion dollars; its Chinese business was runs a nearby Bed & Breakfast, spends his leisure time lov- then absorbed by the Chinese company. Today, Alibaba ingly sketching ships and ocean vessels. Could he perhaps has more than 15 million customers worldwide. Its online earn money with his hobby through eBay? How much could payment system Alipay is the most successful one in he get forsuch a picture? Spike offers his advice, but Archie‘s China. Jack Ma‘s private assets are estimated to be 500 wife Kathie remains skeptical. Letter carrier Jo Wade prefers million Swiss francs. China, East Coast

to travel to the mainland twice a year to do her shopping, but Recently, telephone lines were installed in Mata Ortiz. Now, she‘s curious about eBay nonetheless: after all, the number the artists are considering selling the vases themselves of packets being sent to the Isle of Skye has increased dra- through eBay. But how do you start such a project? Who will matically... run the website? The potters of Mata Ortiz don‘t have to wait very long for enterprising advisors... In the village of Mata Ortiz in the desert of northern Mexico, people‘s main source of income is pottery – their ornate Borna, Isle of Skye, Mata Ortiz: Everywhere, the „Spirit of vases are a big sales hit on eBay in the United States. Larry eBay“ – the classic American Dream that says that anyone Deming from Tularosa is the most successful Powerseller in can make it if he wants to – is inspiring hopes and ideas. Jim this fi eld and he drives regularly from house to house to pick Griffi th embodies this philosophy like nobody else. As one up his orders. who was there from the beginning and the popular host of the eBay Radio Show, „Uncle Griff“ sits at the very heart of eBay headquarters in California, right next to the company‘s top executives. He is author of the eBay Bible, the bestsell- ing handbook for the eBay community. Griff is the face of a perfect world that is styled down to the minutest detail, a massive marketing concept with which eBay promises not only fi nancial success, but also human warmth and inner fulfi llment...

And yet the eBay empire is in jeopardy: In China, Alibaba – the Internet company of shrewd business manager Jack Ma – joined forces with eBay competitor Yahoo and is taking on eBay in a fi erce price war. After already being forced to Taobao-Callcenter, China withdraw from the Japanese market a few years ago, eBay is also threatened with defeat in the fastest growing of all territories. Alibaba may present this bitter competition as the brave fi ght of David versus Goliath – but it has already be- come an unpredictable power itself...

What is behind global commerce on the Internet? What is dream and what is reality? What are the realistic chances and what is mere marketing? Marcus Vetter and Stefan Tolz have created a fi lm that is as illuminating as it is entertain- ing, a fi lm about a current phenomena that spans our globe,

Jack Ma, CEO of Alibaba.com a phenomena in which appearances are constantly colliding with reality.

Jack Ma, eBay‘s maiin competitor in China Mexico, Mata Ortiz

DREAMS OF WEALTH AND HAPPINESS Stefan Tolz and Marcus Vetter talk about their fi lm

AROUND THE GLOBE PROTAGONISTS

Stefan Tolz We were attracted to the challenge of fi nding a ST We met the Thurm family from Borna in Saxony while way to tell a story about this popular topic and turn it into a we were researching the project at an eBay event. Initially, it gripping fi lm. We didn‘t want „Traders’ Dreams“ to be a fi lm wasn‘t clear if they were going to carry on with the Power- for computer freaks. We set out to describe human experi- seller idea. For that reason, we did further video casting at ences that touch you emotionally. Our aim was to create a eBay seminars. But in the end, no one couldn‘t beat the hon- parable about globalization and the colorful world of eBay, est and open demeanor of the Thurms. When they fi nally got which has been exported from America into more than 30 started with eBay, it was clear that we would include them different countries. We wanted to see what was behind the in the fi lm. promise eBay is spreading, behind the hopes and the dream of wealth and happiness. We wanted to investigate this When looking for a story „from the end of the world“ we around the globe by taking this „toy“ called eBay which is found out about this toy museum on the Isle of Skye. They‘d „played with“ all over the world and which may stand for suffered a disastrous fi re and had bought their newer exhib- completely different things in different countries. its on eBay. During my visit, I also met the neighbors: Pow- erseller Spike, Joe the letter carrier and Archie and Kathie SIGNS OF THE TIMES Campbell, who ran the Bed & Breakfast where I stayed.

Marcus Vetter For me, the euphoria surrounding eBay is a phenomenon typical of our times. A lot of people suddenly be- lieve in the possibility of fulfi lling their dream of independence through eBay. In Germany, the idea of using eBay to start a successful new business is so widespread that employment offi ces have even offered programs to help get these forms of self-employment off the ground. But is it really that simple? What consequences does it have? With the different stories in our fi lm, we were attempting to put this complex subject together like a puzzle.

For example, our Mexico story is about how the potters of Larry Deming, Tularosatrader.com Mata Ortiz produce these beautiful handmade vases. But what is a fair price? In the end, trading in these vases is much more lucrative than the laborious production, i.e. than the artistic process. Should the artisans now become trad- ers themselves? What are the consequences when actually making things is no longer lucrative and everyone is only in- terested in doing business? The fi lm poses these questions, without pretending to have the ultimate answers. Instead, we want to inspire people to go on thinking about it and asking questions.

Macario, artist from Mata Ortiz „We Mexicans should join together and sell directly from here! Direct from the potter to the gringo. You’re almost sure to sell on eBay, especially if you sell in other countries, too. The only thing is, you have to pay to list things on eBay. Even if you don’t sell them, you have to pay. They take it from your account. You can’t avoid paying.” Ruben and Macario, potters

When Archie and Kathie heard about my research, they want- hind it. These are aspects not everyone knows about. In the ed my opinion about whether Archie should try to sell his case of the Thurms, it‘s not about making one great sale, but drawings of ships on eBay. It stood to reason that he should about trying to make a living through eBay. There‘s a lot at ask his friend Spike about this. And with that, we had the stake. Ideas and slogans like „eBay makes the world a better beginnings of a story... place“ or „people in pursuit of a dream“ were the points that guided us, points where we could create tension and track We found out about Mata Ortiz in Mexico because their pot- developments. tery-making was described in an eBay company video as a perfect example of how eBay can help people in the Third World. The headline was „Economic Democracy.“ But when we arrived in Mexico in the spring of 2005, we discovered that all of the vases that were being sold on eBay were of- fered through middlemen from the United States at a consid- erable profi t margin. So it wasn‘t the kind of direct sales the marketing fi lm had suggested. In his preliminary research, Marcus Vetter had become acquainted with potters Macario and Ruben, who were very interested in selling on the Inter- net. It was only natural to fi nd out together with them if it would work. The fact that Larry Deming, an American Pow- erseller specializing in the vases, turned up while we were shooting, was a stroke of luck for us.

MONTAGE Macario, artist from Mata Ortiz

MV Editing this fi lm was the biggest challenge. Very quick- With its online portal MerdacoLibre.com, eBay is present ly, we had fi ve separate stories, each of which functioned in 12 Latin-American countries, where it has 18.7 million wonderfully on its own. But when we tried telling each story registered users. In 2006, 50% of revenue from sales of one after the other, we realized very quickly that it wouldn‘t products was generated in Brazil. work. At that point, we began months of detailed work on the complicated process of interweaving the stories in such In Mata Ortiz, pottery dates back to a people called a way that together, they would form a whole: How one com- Paquimé, who disappeared mysteriously around the year pany set out to make the world happy with its philosophy 1400 A.D. Extensive ruins and numerous shards and – „Anyone can become a trader and be the master of his own other highly developed ceramics have been found in the fate.“ And how this promise affected the people: Were the deserts of northern Mexico. During the 1970s, a young dreams and hopes they had invested in eBay fulfi lled, or were Mexican named Juan Quezada conducted experiments they faced with a sobering reality in the end? with mixtures of clay and volcanic ash on the basis of the archeological fi nds, and painted his ceramics in the style of the Paquimé. Spencer MacCallum, an amateur BARGAIN HUNTING anthropologist, became aware of Quezada‘s pottery. He arranged exhibitions and sales in the USA and later also ST During preproduction, we watched all kinds of reports and in Canada, Japan and Europe. spots about eBay and determined that the usual „browse- buy-and-sell“ approach leads nowhere. Almost everyone Today, nearly 400 potters work in Mata Ortiz. eBay has knows an eBay story, a story of being cheated, an incredible become the most signifi cant trade platform for the vases bargain, or a lucrative sale. But in our fi lm, we wanted to and ceramics made in Mata Ortiz, although nearly all of show a story with a development behind our protagonists. the business is conducted through distributors from the For us, it was about the eBay idea, about the philosophy be- United States. „It‘s not an easy situation. Our careers came to a halt. We were thrown out of a normal working life with a secure job at an age at which we have practically no chance of re-establishing ourselves. We then took a little time to fi nd out what we could do in such a situation. As for eBay... we knew that such a thing existed but didn‘t really know how it works.“ Konrad Thurm, new business founder

EBAY’S REACTIONS stonewalled and politely made it clear that we would not re- ceive any form of special access to eBay China. ST At eBay, you have to distinguish between those who were there at the beginning and the new „powers“ within the corpo- ALIBABA AND THE CHINESE THIEVES ration. Even company founder Pierre Omidyar is now shielded by the PR department in the USA. When he appears pub- MV When eBay decides to develop a country that is still an licly, it‘s usually with arranged questions and through eBay untapped area on its corporate map, it sometimes swiftly hosts. In that light, we must say that eBay Germany provided buys the local competitor. Additionally, there is an attempt to a great deal of support. We were allowed to conduct a video copy the American eBay model as much as possible. But in casting at an event in Potsdam, were permitted to fi lm at China, this business model did not work. When eBay chose to the eBay University in Dresden and were eventually admitted maintain a low profi le regarding China, we became increas- to eBay Live in California. Regarding China though, despite ingly more interested in the story of Alibaba, eBay‘s biggest intercession from Germany, the American eBay headquarters competitor in China.

At our fi rst meeting in Hangzhou, Porter Erisman, chief press offi cer at Alibaba, informed us that he had to travel to a press conference in Hong Kong the following day. Alibaba was plan- ning to announce that it would be offering its auction portal for free for another three years – this was designed to push eBay out of the Chinese market. We immediately changed our travel plans and fl ew to Hong Kong with him. Porter was very open; he even allowed us to shoot him that night in his hotel room while he was writing the press release announcing that Yahoo would be joining forces with Alibaba. Through Porter, we then had full access to Jack Ma. Santa Claus costume with applicatios und bobble

Borna – located 30 km south of Leipzig, population This media war, ignited against eBay by its Chinese competi- 22,000. The lignite industry, which shaped the economy tor, this declaration of war acts in „Traders’ Dreams“ like a and the face of the landscape around Borna for over thriller behind the stories of the various individuals. Perhaps 100 years, was phased out after 1990 due to a lack of one is initially pleased that someone is trying to put eBay in profi tability. Unemployment is high. Currently, the Helios its place. But then it becomes clear that Alibaba, as a modi- Clinics are the region‘s largest employer. fi ed Chinese copy of eBay, is just as profi t-oriented and wants just as much to be the world‘s market leader. Alando, the German forerunner of eBay, was purchased by eBay six months after it was founded for $43 mil- APPRAISAL lion. As of February 2007, 68% percent of the German population over age 18 has Internet access (74% of men, MV eBay expanded the principle worldwide that says the 62% of women). In the eastern part of Germany, the market determines an item‘s value, i.e. price. percentage is slightly lower at 62%. In February 2007, And everyone is invited to take part in this capitalist principle. there were over 18 million registered eBay users, which But where are the limits? This question is expressed in the represents 51.7 % of all active Internet users in the scene with Archie and Spike in Scotland. Spike so completely population. adheres to the eBay philosophy that he even suggests that Archie should make a smaller copy of his picture, so that it On average, the German visitor to eBay spends 2.11 hours would be easier to sell and fi t better in people‘s living rooms. a month on eBay. Thus, eBay accounts for 14.5 % of the Spike, who has become a salesman through and through, total time spent online. In 2005, eBay Germany had an- thus brings Archie, an artist, into a very tough predicament. nual revenues of $691 million. Saxony, Borna

At the end of the fi lm, potter Macario sums up the dangers Through its partnership with Alibaba in China and its position connected with trading in anonymity on the Internet from his as market leader in Japan, Yahoo has made it diffi cult for standpoint: While eBay may have made it possible for his art eBay to expand further. For that reason, eBay is currently to become known throughout the world, he nevertheless pre- focused more on consolidation and securing new business fers it when his buyers observe him at work and truly learn areas in the places it has been successful. In all probability, to appreciate his art in this manner. He remains skeptical: the auction platform eBay will increasingly turn into an inter- „We‘ll see what progress brings us in the future. We only just nationally active conglomerate whose company strategy will learned how to use a telephone...“ be determined by its shareholder value – and one day it may perhaps allow itself to be swallowed by a competitor such as COMPETITION Microsoft, Amazon or Google...

ST In an indirect way, Google has become the most signifi - cant competitor. Google, however, doesn‘t wish to harm its neighbor eBay because eBay is one of its biggest advertising customers. But by now, many successful eBay sellers have their own Internet shops and use platforms like Google to direct people to their shops rather than listing their products on eBay. In Europe, however, eBay has thus far had no reason to fear other platforms. There are exceptions, like Switzer- land, where eBay trails its competitor Ricardo. But in most countries, there are only small competing companies, and eBay holds the position as market leader.

Family Thurm listing their fi rst item on eBay

In Europa hat eBay andere Plattformen bisher allerdings nicht Family Thurm, Borna: waiting for the fi rst offer USA, San José

THE FILMMAKERS FILMOGRAPHY Stefan Tolz (Selection) 2004 Shibam – Manhattan of the Desert 2003 Shomal – Riviera of the Mullahs MARCUS VETTER’s (*1967) previous feature documentary 2001 On the Edge of Time – Male Domains in the “My father, the Turk” won several international awards and Caucasus was screened at the Joris Ivens Competition (IDFA) last year. JORIS IVENS COMPETITION IDFA AMSTERDAM 2001 His fi lm “The Tunnel” on a famous escape of East’s Germans GOLDEN GATE AWARD SAN FRANCISCO 2002 through a legendary tunnel in Berlin in the 1950’s has been GRAND PRIZE TIDFF TAIWAN 2002 one of the best- bestselling German TV documentaries and ECOCINEMA SPECIAL PRIZE ZAKYNTHOS 2002 last year was presented on The Sundance Channel in the U.S. NOMINATION FOR ADOLF GRIMME AWARD 2002 Marcus has directed numerous prime time documentaries 1999 Bosphorus and received the Adolf Grimme Prize three times. He has a 1997 Faroe Islands background of Economics and Media Communication with NOMINATION FOR THE PRIX EUROPA 1998 studies in Tübingen and Madrid. 1995 Goldhochzeit (Golden Wedding) 1992 Caucasian Banquet FILMOGRAPHY Marcus Vetter (Selection) 1989 Power lies elsewhere (Co-director) GOLDEN FILMDUKAT INTERNATIONAL FILMFESTIVAL 2006 My father the turk (Co-director Ariane Riecker) MANNHEIM 1989 PRIX EUROPE 2006, JORIS IVENS COMPETITION PRIZE FOR THE BEST ENVIRONMENTAL FILM, IDFA 2006, GOLDEN GATE AWARD 2007 MANNHEIM 1989 2004 The Battle for Bruckmann 2003 La Florida. Streets of the Duped NOMINATION FOR ADOLF GRIMME PREIS 2004 2002 Wargames 2001 Broadway Bruchsal ADOLF GRIMME SONDERPREIS DES LANDES NRW 2002 2000 Where money grows - the story of EM-TV ADOLF GRIMME PREIS 2001 HERBERT QUANDT WIRTSCHAFTSPREIS 2001, ERNST SCHNEIDER PREIS 2001 1999 The Tunnel ADOLF GRIMME PREIS 2000 DEUTSCHER FERNSEHPREIS 2000 NOMINATION FOR PRIX EUROPA 2000

STEFAN TOLZ (*1966) has been working internationally as a fi lmmaker for many years. His feature documentary “On the Stefan Tolz, Marcus Vetter Edge of Time” about remote communities in the Caucasus In 1995, Pierre Omidyar founded eBay, initially using the (IDFA 2001) won the Golden Gate Award at the San Francisco name auctionweb. Company headquarters are in San International Film Festival, the Grand Prix in Taiwan and was Josè, California. In its fi rst few years of operation, eBay's released theatrically in Germany. He studied fi lm directing in earnings doubled regularly and by 2006 had reached 1.12 Munich and Georgia’s capital Tbilisi and has been teaching billion dollars worldwide on total sales of 5.97 billion. documentary fi lmmaking at various European fi lm schools. According to company statistics, a digital camera is sold Also an experienced producer he recently received nomina- on eBay every 50 seconds in Germany, and each day 13 tion for the International Emmy for the TV series “The Search excavators are sold. 12.000 Powersellers and over for Happiness”. 50,000 eBay shops are registered. “The opportunity is equal for everyone. All they need to get in any particular geographic location is enough infrastructure so that you can turn on a computer and connect to the rest of the network around the world. Doesn’t matter how old you are, how educated you are or not educated, what country you live in, what race, what creed, what nationality, what your beliefs are, what your sexual orientation is, none of it matters.” Jim Griffi th (,Griff’), host of the eBay-Radio-Show and author of the ,eBay-Bible’

DEVELOPED IN COOPERATION WITH Discovery Campus Masterschool TRADERS‘ DREAMS AND WITH THE SUPPORT OF Gerd Ruge scholarship ASSOCIATE PRODUCER Filmperspektive AND Marcus Vetter PRODUCED BY Filmquadrat IN CO-PRODUKTION WITH ZDF AND NDR IN A FILM BY Marcus Vetter and Stefan Tolz COOPERATION WITH ARTE AND WITH THE PARTICIPATION OF Télévision CINEMATOGRAPHY Sylvio Claußner, Thomas Riedelsheimer, Suisse Romande (TSR). SUPPORTED BY Filmstiftung Nordrhein- Holger Schüppel, Dieter Stürmer Westfalen, FFA AND BKM. EDITING Annette Muff, Marc Schubert, Stefan Tolz, Saskia Metten © 2007 Filmquadrat, 83 MIN, color, 1:1,85, Dolby Digital LOCATION SOUND Thomas Schwarz, Marcus Vetter RE-RECORDING MIX Tom Dokoupil MUSIC BY Paul Shigihara

SECOND CAMERA Stefan Tolz, Nils Keber, Stefan Thissen, Marcus Vetter PRODUCTION TEAM Sebastian Fünder, Nina Ludewig, Michele Owen POSTPRODUCTION COORDINATOR Carina Mergens SOUND DESIGN Marilyn Janssen MUSIC ENGINEERING Stephen Bohn COLOURIST Oliver Kenneke EXPOSURE CONTROL Norbert Dziambor GRAPHICS Jörg Neiß At the “eBay Live“ eBay fans talk int he “chatterbox“ about their experience TRANSLATIONS Paul Bendelow, Vincent Abbate, Baige Hou, Marcela Cano POSTPRODUCTION Whitehouse Studios, Sound Vision, ACT Videoproduktion, CinePostproduction Geyer Köln SUBTITLES Holland Subtitling

RESEARCH AND COLLABORATION Anna Brass, Minh-Hang Ha, Kieran Hannigan, Maria Henoch, Jeroen van’t Hoofd, Mareike Lange,

Chris Lawson, Isaiah Saxon, Macario, Ruben, Israel doing internet research in Mata Ortiz Emma Thomas

ACCOUNTANT Birgitta Bruder LINE PRODUCER Markus Breimaier COMMISSIONING EDITOR Hans-Robert Eisenhauer (ZDF / ARTE) Thomas Schreiber (NDR) EXECUTIVE PRODUCER Stefan Tolz

Spike, Powerseller on the Isle of Skye Borna, Saxony

China, East Coast

Isle of Skye, Scotland

San José, California

www.tradersdreams.com Mata Ortiz, Mexico