Maria is a 15-years-old girl, who lives with her mother, Célia, and her brother Anderson in a favela in São Gonçalo, in Rio de Janeiro. She wants more than the fate considered traditional for a young black woman from the favela. Maria wants to study at a “strong” school. She participated in an essay competition at a renowned private school. Her text impresses the evaluation panel and she is approved. In addition to Maria, two teenagers also win scholarships: Zilton, 16, her neighbor and friend, and Aline, 15, a studious but influenceable girl. Although they passed the exam, the three have a big challenge ahead of them: keeping their grades high, proving that they deserve to be there and adapting to a world of privileges that never belonged to them.