Russian Actress Arrives at International Space Station

Their journey wasn't without its hiccups.

Space Movie

Russian actress Yulia Peresild just arrived at the International Space Station, alongside director Klim Shipenko after launching from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan early Tuesday morning local time.

Their task is to film the first-ever feature-length film in space — a project Russia’s space agency head Dmitry Rogozin is hoping will bring attention to the country's space ambitions and attract young talent as well.

The duo traveled to the station on board a Soyuz spacecraft, but their journey wasn't without its hiccups. The capsule's arrival was delayed due to software problems as well as "ratty comms" with mission control in Moscow, one official told The New York Times.

Veteran astronaut Anton Shkaplerov, the third member of the crew, had to manually steer the capsule to the docking port on the station's Russian segment.

The Challenge

The crew will spend about a week on board the orbital outpost filming scenes for a project with the working title "The Challenge," about a surgeon who travels to the space station to save a cosmonaut's life.

According to Russian TV station Channel One, the movie will include 35 to 40 minutes of footage taken on the ISS.

Though Russia now has a head start, Hollywood is close on its heels.

Tom Cruise is in talks with NASA and SpaceX to to film an action-adventure movie on board the ISS as well. Details are sparse, though, and a filming schedule has yet to be confirmed.

READ MORE: Live Updates: A Russian Film Crew Has Arrived at the Space Station. [The New York Times]

More on Russia's space ambitions: A Film Crew Is Launching to the International Space Station Next Week