A Teacher is a 2013 American drama film written and directed by Hannah Fidell, in her feature directorial debut.

[2] It revolves around a female high school teacher's illicit sexual relationship with a male student that turns from infatuation into obsession.

[5][6] While praise was given towards the film's performances, cinematography, score, and its attempt to explore a complex issue, criticisms were reserved over a narrative lack of focus, exposition, and character development.

Diana Watts, a high school English teacher in suburban Texas, is having an affair with Eric Tull, one of her students.

Her roommate, Sophia, later tells Diana that she wants to introduce her to single men, Rich and Dan, at a party.

After the holiday break, Diana is told by Jessica, a fellow teacher, that a topless photo of a student has been circulating around the school.

While Jessica laments how careless teenagers can be, Diana realizes that the photo she sent Eric could be spread just as easily.

The next morning, as they are having sex, the ranch foreman, James, arrives at the property and, noticing Eric's car, knocks on the door.

Eric rebuffs her advances and his father comes outside to check on him, causing Diana to run back to her car and leave.

The "one-room" claustrophobia is reminiscent of being trapped in the love-nest of Last Tango in Paris... To her great credit, director Fidell – named by Filmmaker Magazine as one of the 25 New Faces of Independent Film – takes on a tricky topic.

"[13] The New York Post wrote: "A teacher sexually obsessed with the high school student with whom she's having an illicit affair gradually loses her bearings in an evocative but ultimately hollow indie drama.

Writer-director Hannah Fidell makes the common indie mistake of thinking that a dramatic situation is all you need for a movie, but demonstrates an impressive restraint and an ability to manufacture queasy suspense without much dialogue.

Club gave a positive review, writing: "Because contemporary indies tend to overvalue broad generational statements, A Teacher – which is candid, character focused, and only 75 minutes long – initially feels like a breath of fresh air.

Very little time is wasted on exposition; when the movie starts, Burdge is already meeting for regular trysts with teenager Will Brittain... Writer-director Hannah Fidell works in a style that's arty but simple: naturalistic lighting, camera movement that always follows character movement, and a modernist score (by Brian McOmber, formerly of Dirty Projectors) that conveys dread without ever suggesting outright horror.

"[15] For Slackerwood, journalist Jordan Gass-Pooré wrote: "Burdge's performance is like lightning in a bottle: subtle and unpredictable.