The Still Growing Up Film Club: How to Graduate at the Top of Your Class AND Have Fun with Booksmart

What happens when you spend years doing everything “right” — only to discover you might have missed something along the way?

In this episode of The Still Growing Up Film Club, Cece Fanning heads back to high school with Booksmart, following best friends Molly and Amy as they attempt to squeeze four years of missed parties, bad decisions and teenage chaos into one unforgettable night before graduation.

As their carefully constructed plans spectacularly unravel, Cece explores what the film can teach us about perfectionism, achievement, friendship and the danger of assuming we already understand the people around us. She also looks at the pressure to be known for one particular thing — whether that's being smart, successful or neurodivergent — and what happens when other people see a very different version of us from the person we know ourselves to be.

Along the way, there are crushes, awkward encounters, unexpected friendships, plans going wildly off-script and some painful lessons about listening to the people we love. Molly and Amy may begin the night determined to prove that they can have it all, but they discover something more important: growing up sometimes means admitting you were wrong, apologising when you've hurt someone and allowing yourself to enjoy the present instead of constantly preparing for what's next.

Because working hard matters. But so do friendship, fun, mistakes and all the parts of life that can't be added to a résumé.

Follow Cece: 📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thenotoriouscece 📱 TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@thenotoriouscece ✍️ Blog: https://cecewhatimean.com/ 🛍️ Store: https://stillgrowinguppodcast.dashery.com/

Produced for the Autistic Culture Podcast Network.

🎧 The Still Growing Up Film Club is available on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and all major platforms. 🌈 Celebrate autistic voices with early access, ad-free listening, and our full archive at AutisticCulturePlus.com 🌐 Visit www.autisticculturepodcastnetwork.com 📲 Follow us on Instagram: @autisticculturepodcast 🎙️ Executive Producers: Amy Burns, Anamaria B Call, Andrew Banner, Anna Goodson, Ashley Apelzin, Audrea Volker, Ben Coulson, Brian Churcek, Cappy Hamper, Carley Biblin, Charlene Deva, Chloe Cross, Clay Duhigg, Clayton Oliver, Danny Dunn, Daria Brown, David Garrido, Emily Burgess, Eric Crane, Erik Stenerud, Fiona Baker, Grace Norman, Helen Shaddock, Jaimie Collins, Jason Killian, Jen Unruh, Jennifer Carpenter, Julia Tretter, Kathie Watson-Gray, Kenneth Knowles, Kira Cotter, Kristine Lang, Kyle Raney, Llew P Williams, Laura Alvarado, Laura De Vito, Laura Provonsha, Lily George, Nelly Darmi, Nigel Rogers, Rachel Miller, Tim Scott, Tyler Kunz, Victoria Steed, Yanina Wood.

🎧 Producers: AJ Knight, Bobby Simon, Da Kovac, Eleanor Collins, Emily Griffiths, Hannah Hughes, Jennifer Kemp, Jonas Fløde, Kate F, Katie N Benitez, Kendra Murphy, Lisa Dennys, Logan Wall, Louise Lomas, Melissa Nance, Nicola Owen, Rebecka Johansson, Sam Morris, Sarah Hannah Morris. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.