diff --git a/openslides/openslides_settings.py b/openslides/openslides_settings.py
index 68d10ade0..da61bdf5c 100755
--- a/openslides/openslides_settings.py
+++ b/openslides/openslides_settings.py
@@ -62,7 +62,7 @@ USE_L10N = True
 
 # Absolute path to the directory that holds media.
 # Example: "/home/media/media.lawrence.com/"
-MEDIA_ROOT = os.path.join(SITE_ROOT, './static/')
+MEDIA_ROOT = _fs2unicode(os.path.join(SITE_ROOT, './static/'))
 
 # URL that handles the media served from MEDIA_ROOT. Make sure to use a
 # trailing slash if there is a path component (optional in other cases).