Christina (Claudia Karvan) is a schoolteacher from a wealthy Greek-Australian background, engaged to a lawyer and content with the traditional course of her life. She begins teaching at an inner-city working-class school and she finds her ideas challenged by the students. Involving herself in a campaign by a group of non-anglo students to form a soccer club in a school where the racist PE teacher only supports Australian Rules Football, Christina starts falling in love with aspiring soccer player, 17 year old Nick (Alex Dimitriades).

The ensuing affair forces Christina to challenge herself, her family and the culture she lives in. Managing to effectively combine comedy with a refreshing examination of contemporary ethnic relationships in Australia, beautifully acted by a young cast, and insightfully scripted, "The Heartbreak Kid" is a breakthrough film in an Australian film culture for too long dominated by narrow colonialist ideology. Based on the play by Richard Barrett.

• Filmographies: Claudia Karvan, Alex Dimitriades and Michael Jenkins