Theme: school life
Everyday life's most important learning arena.
There's much to be said about school, but many would agree that it is one of children's most important learning and socialization arenas. Even though teachers and students hava a curricula and rules, the school consists of individuals, and many things can happen in the course of everyday school life.
Here's a handful of films about school, teachers, and the children or adults who are not quite able to adapt to the system, for better or worse.
"A good teacher is an artist", according to John Steinbeck. The good teacher is a Norwegian documentary that follows Inge Eidsvåg and his thoughts on teaching and pedagogy, as a starting point for his discussion on what a good teacher is. But it is also about what it actually takes to become a good teacher!
At Jose Urbina Lopez Elementary School in the poorest part of northern Mexico, the students learn very little. Poverty and crime are extremely high in the area, and the children have little hopes of a better future. Statistically, most of them will fail and become part of the drug trafficking that occurs where they live. But when the school gets a new teacher who uses new methods in teaching, something happens. Radical is an award-winning film about hope, and about seeing old problems and established truths through new, fresh eyes.
The comedy Fack ju Göhte is about the bank robber Zeki who, when he gets out of prison, discovers that his accomplice friend Charlie has buried the loot from their last heist in a place where a school now stands. To get hold of the loot, he decides to take a job as a substitute teacher at the school. The film has won several awards, and has an IMDb score of 6.9.
Martin Freeman, perhaps best known for his role in The Hobbit, plays a teacher at the local school in Miller’s Girl. As part of the summer school curriculum, he gives one of his students a project that gradually entangles them both in an increasingly complex web. Feelings develop between them, and colleagues question the teacher's judgment. Jenny Ortega plays the role of the sharp and inquisitive student.
Stompa and co. is an old classic story about Stein Oscar Nagell Eriksen, who starts out at boarding school. There he encounters several special characters, both dedicated and strict teachers, and students who become his friends for life. Stompa has a special talent for getting into trouble, but usually it turns out fine – in the end!
Armand, directed by Halfdan Tøndel, is a Norwegian film that tells the story of the schoolboy Armand and his mother (Renate Reinsve). The mother is called to a parent-teacher meeting, and is confronted with the fact that Armand has behaved inappropriately towards another student. The film raises intriguing questions about who has, and who takes responsibility when things happen to and between children at school.
Frau Nowak (Leonie Benesch) has control and structure in the classroom, while also showing care for each student in her class. When suspicions of theft spread at the school, it becomes crucial for her to clear up the matter so that teaching can continue as usual. The teachers' lounge is a refreshing drama from Germany.
Published: 05/05/2026 Last updated: 07/05/2026
