India, March 23 -- The classroom is a microcosm of the world in the excellent new documentary Favoriten, directed by Ruth Beckermann. It is a space that is never not chaotic but it is also unassumingly alive, and requires loads of hours and effort from the teacher at place. Premiering at the Copenhagen International Documentary Film Festival, Favoriten has been filmed for three years, from 2020 - 2023, where the camera stays with 25 kids and their teacher Ilkay Idiskut inside a classroom in the biggest primary school of Vienna. What transpires in the course of the next 118 minutes is a funny, charming and utterly compelling documentation of the power of guidance and the idea of community. (Also read: Sting Like a Bee review: A fascinating...