During the day, Lera studies humankind and its needs through opinion polls, which are an educational practice at the institute; at night, she dances under the pseudonym Gerda in a club to support herself and her mother. The people she meets are as unfortunate as her family. Her father has recently left for another woman, but he constantly returns home, unable to make his choice and thereby making the life of close people intolerable. The mother painfully endures the breakup and constantly sleeps, ignoring reality. Lera doesn’t know how to carry on, where to go and what to live for, and — most importantly — how to improve life. The adult world, invariable unfortunate, which Lera observes day and night, seems hopeless.

The Student

Andrey, the coach of the Severe Tigers children's hockey team in a small provincial town, gives his all to his pupils. The dimensional life of a man is disturbed by the news that the only ice palace in the city is going to be demolished and a shopping center built. Andrey is given a chance to "compete" for the Ice Palace by taking part in an adult amateur hockey tournament. Now he has only a few months to assemble his hockey team and prepare it for the most important tournament. The fathers of little hockey players, having learned about the recruitment to the team, decide to go on the ice themselves and fight for the future of their children.