The Kindergarten Teacher

Friday, October 12 - Thursday, October 18, 2018

Lisa Spinelli (Maggie Gyllenhaal) is a kindergarten teacher in Staten Island who yearns to live a
life of art and intellectualism. She takes an evening poetry class where, despite her best efforts,
her work is overlooked and misunderstood. When she overhears Jimmy (Parker Sevak), one of
her five-year-old students, reciting an original poem in her classroom, she is floored. Convinced
he is the equivalent of a young Mozart, she becomes obsessed with the child and embarks on a
dangerous journey to nurture his talent. As Lisa continues down this increasingly desperate
path, she seems ready to throw away everything to chase an impossible dream.

A tense psychological thriller, THE KINDERGARTEN TEACHER stars Maggie Gyllenhaal,
Parker Sevak, Anna Baryshnikov, and Rosa Salazar, with Michael Chernus and Gael García
Bernal. Sara Colangelo wrote and directed. Talia Kleinhendler, Osnat Handelsman-Keren,
Maggie Gyllenhaal, Celine Rattray, and Trudie Styler produced.

• Running Time 97 minutes
• Distributor Netflix
• Director Sara Colangelo
• Writer Sara Colangelo, Nadav Lapid (based on the screenplay by)
• Cast Maggie Gyllenhaal, Rosa Salazar, Gael Garcia Bernal

IFC Center does not generally provide advisories about subject matter or potentially triggering content in films, as sensitivities vary from person to person. In addition to the synopses, trailers and other links on our website, further information about content and age-appropriateness for specific films can be found on Common Sense Media, IMDb and DoesTheDogDie.com as well as through general internet searches.