In 1920 Poltava, Ukraine, the first Soviet colony for street boys was created. This film tells the story of these rebellious kids and how the colony's director sought to rehabilitate them by allowing them to govern themselves.
| Actor | Role |
|---|---|
 Vladimir YemelyanovAnton Semyonovich Makarenko | Anton Semyonovich Makarenko |
 Georgiy YumatovSasha Zadorov | Sasha Zadorov |
 Yuriy SarantsevGrisha Burun | Grisha Burun |
 Yulian PanichSemyen Karabanov | Semyen Karabanov |
 Rolan BykovStepan Perets | Stepan Perets |
 Pavel KadochnikovAleksei Maximovich "Maxim" Gorky | Aleksei Maximovich "Maxim" Gorky |
 Yelena LitskanovichYekaterina Grigoryevna | Yekaterina Grigoryevna |
| MMisha ChernovAnton Semyenovich "Toska" Solovyev | Anton Semyenovich "Toska" Solovyev |
 Konstantin BartashevichChairman of Public Education | Chairman of Public Education |
 Vladimir BoriskinKovrakh | Kovrakh |
| MMykhailo PokotyloKalina Ivanovich | Kalina Ivanovich |
| AAleksandr DenisovNot listed | Not listed |
| IIvan ZacharzhevskyIll boy | Ill boy |
 Konstantin MikhailovInspector Sharin | Inspector Sharin |