15 Inspiring Movies for Teenagers That Do Not Feel Like Homework

A lively true story about brilliant mathematicians whose work helped make the US space programme possible despite barriers around race and gender.

This belongs on your list when the brief is: True story · Ambition.

A teenager in a mining town becomes obsessed with building rockets and discovers that curiosity can create a different future.

This belongs on your list when the brief is: Science · Persistence.

A father keeps pursuing a career opportunity while housing and financial insecurity make every step harder.

This belongs on your list when the brief is: Resilience · True story.

A boy in a mining community discovers ballet and has to decide how much other people's expectations should define him.

This belongs on your list when the brief is: British · Confidence.

A talented student enters competitive spelling and learns that accepting help does not make achievement less her own.

This belongs on your list when the brief is: Education · Confidence.

Problem-solving becomes genuinely exciting as one stranded astronaut survives by repeatedly turning huge problems into smaller ones.

This belongs on your list when the brief is: Science · Resilience.

A Ugandan girl discovers competitive chess and begins imagining possibilities beyond the life she expected.

This belongs on your list when the brief is: True story · Strategy.

A teenager starts a band partly to impress a girl and accidentally discovers the joy of making something of his own.

This belongs on your list when the brief is: Music · Creativity.

A teenager uses what he has learned to build a practical solution when drought threatens his community.

This belongs on your list when the brief is: Engineering · True story.

A basketball coach insists that academic standards matter alongside sporting talent.

This belongs on your list when the brief is: Sport · Discipline.

A habitual dreamer finally has to act, travel and take risks rather than imagine a more interesting life from a distance.

This belongs on your list when the brief is: Adventure · Confidence.

A gifted young man has to decide whether intelligence alone is enough or whether changing his life requires vulnerability and effort.

This belongs on your list when the brief is: Older teens · Potential.

A sports story about questioning established wisdom, working with evidence and accepting that a good idea can look ridiculous before it works.

This belongs on your list when the brief is: Sport · Problem-solving.

Not a moral template, but a fascinating look at ambition, creation, competition and the personal cost of building something enormous very quickly.

This belongs on your list when the brief is: Older teens · Ambition.

Under the superhero spectacle is a very good story about learning before you feel ready and becoming your own version of capable.

This belongs on your list when the brief is: Animation · Confidence.