Winner of the Silver Bear Jury Prize at the Berlin International Film Festival, Maria Speth’s epic documentary paints a powerfully empathetic portrait of a progressive teacher – and of the bonds he tries to build with his diverse young pupils.

Dieter Bachmann teaches class 6b at the Georg Büchner School in Stadtallendorf, a German town notable chiefly for its wartime status as a secret munitions centre that used forced labour from Nazi-occupied countries. There are some Stadtallendorf natives in Bachmann’s class of 12- and 13-year-olds – but they’re joined by pupils from nine other countries, each with their own story to tell and their own cultural and linguistic challenges to overcome. With echoes of Frederick Wiseman, Speth’s immersive, intimate film follows genial maverick Bachman as he tries to bring the best from each child in challenging circumstances, his approach falling into conflict with the society in which his pupils are trying to call home.