The Flying Classroom

The Flying Classroom

Martina wins a scholarship to attend a prestigious boarding school in the Alps. Upon arrival, she instantly becomes embroiled in the bitter feud between the boarders and the "day pupils". Martina finds herself torn between academic aspirations, family responsibilities, and loyalty to newfound friends.

A young girl called Martina, who lives in a Berlin high-rise housing estate, gets the chance to win a scholarship to attend a prestigious boarding school in a picturesque Alpine town. As soon as she arrives at the school, tough Jo, boxer Matze and little Uli make it abundantly clear what kind of iron rule governs school life: the city kids at the boarding school and the "day pupils" from the local village don’t mix with one another; on the contrary, they are sworn enemies and have been so for generations.

And there’s nothing the adults can do about it either. The kind-hearted boarding school director Justus Bökh (Tom Schilling) just tries to please everybody. The school’s headmistress Kreuzkamm (Hannah Herzsprung) doesn't get very far either with her at times unpredictable strictness. She also happens to be the mother of the "day pupils" leader Ruda. And there is the mysterious non-smoker (Trystan Pütter) who lives a dropout existence in a railway carriage. He doesn't even make any attempt to interfere in the first place.

The plan to settle the never-ending dispute with a joint play at the end of the year doesn’t work – as was to be expected. But then a dramatic accident changes everything...

The big-screen adaptation of Erich Kästner’s best-selling children’s and young adult's book is directed by the Swedish filmmaker Carolina Hellsgård (Sunburned, Ever After, Wanja) who has added a contemporary point of view and female protagonists to the well-known story.

THE FLYING CLASSROOM stars Tom Schilling (Fabian – Going to the Dogs; Oh, Boy!), Trystan Pütter (Toni Erdmann; Into the Beat), and Hannah Herzsprung (Four Minutes; The Reader) and features an outstanding cast of up-and-coming talents such as Leni Deschner (Raspberries with Mustard), Wanja Valentin Kube (Human Factors) and many others.

A thrilling and entertaining adventure with a heartwarming plot full of action and gripping twists and turns that makes use of a delightful sense of humor to show how vital friendship, justice and team spirit are. There’s nothing ordinary about this school and it’s all about overcoming fears while growing up - and sometimes that means questioning the rules…

The Flying Classroom is a production of UFA FICTION in co-production with Leonine Studios.