The Still Growing Up Film Club
Aug 30, 2026 · 46 min · 14 segments
What can Ferris Bueller teach us about letting go of the plan and actually enjoying the moment we're in? In the first episode of *The Still Growing Up Film Club*, Cece Fanning revisits the 1986…
Cece FanningHost
Set on a spring day in a Chicago suburb, Ferris Bueller's Day Off follows titular character Ferris Bueller along with his friends Cameron and Sloane on their day playing hooky from school.
Determined to have one last epic day off before he graduates high school, Ferris convinces Cameron and Sloane to join him as he does everything he's wanted to do on a random weekday with no rules and no obligations.
From the beginning of the film, it is apparent that Ferris is one of those kids with a tenacious spirit and a zest for life that not everyone is blessed with.
Ferris pretends to be sick to get out of a boring day of school, but there is a catch.
He only gets so many days to be absent from school, so he wants to spend the day off well.
After convincing his mom and dad he's actually sick, Ferris later gets his best friend Cameron to join him on his day of adventure.
The two friends even bail Ferris' girlfriend Sloane out of school to have fun with them.
Soon after arriving downtown, the gang goes to a baseball game, to lunch, to the art museum, and to a big parade, being careful not to get caught by any of the adults they encounter from the restaurant's maitre d', to Ferris' dad, to other characters who just want to take Ferris down.
On their way home from the city, they realize that Cameron's dad's car that they used to get to the city has a lot more miles on it from being driven around by the parking garage attendants on their joyride.
Luckily, Ferris and Cameron resolve their conflict on this, and Cameron decides to stand up to his dad even after ruining his car.
Ferris makes it home in the nick of time, and his sister Jeannie, hellbent on revenge, saves Ferris from the actual antagonist of the story, Principal Rooney, as he is about to tell Ferris and Jeannie's parents about how Ferris faked being sick for the day.
Throughout the film, Ferris doesn't always know where he's going, sometimes literally, but he does know that he is going to enjoy the ride.
We must keep in mind, to quote Ferris Bueller, a person should not believe in an ism.
Whether you can remember what you were doing in 1985, or if you weren't even born yet, get ready to accompany Ferris, Sloan, and Cameron.
As we relearn, or maybe learn for the first time, some rules taught to us by Ferris and the gang.
And we'll answer questions like, what makes this such an amazing coming-of-age story? And what does Ferris Bueller's day off even have to do with being neurodivergent? Guess you'll have to call it sick and keep listening to find out.
Set on a spring day in a Chicago suburb, Ferris Bueller's Day Off follows titular character Ferris Bueller along with his friends Cameron and Sloane on their day playing hooky from school.
Determined to have one last epic day off before he graduates high school, Ferris convinces Cameron and Sloane to join him as he does everything he's wanted to do on a random weekday with no rules and no obligations.
From the beginning of the film, it is apparent that Ferris is one of those kids with a tenacious spirit and a zest for life that not everyone is blessed with.
Ferris pretends to be sick to get out of a boring day of school, but there is a catch.
He only gets so many days to be absent from school, so he wants to spend the day off well.
After convincing his mom and dad he's actually sick, Ferris later gets his best friend Cameron to join him on his day of adventure.
The two friends even bail Ferris' girlfriend Sloane out of school to have fun with them.
Soon after arriving downtown, the gang goes to a baseball game, to lunch, to the art museum, and to a big parade, being careful not to get caught by any of the adults they encounter from the restaurant's maitre d', to Ferris' dad, to other characters who just want to take Ferris down.
On their way home from the city, they realize that Cameron's dad's car that they used to get to the city has a lot more miles on it from being driven around by the parking garage attendants on their joyride.
Luckily, Ferris and Cameron resolve their conflict on this, and Cameron decides to stand up to his dad even after ruining his car.
Ferris makes it home in the nick of time, and his sister Jeannie, hellbent on revenge, saves Ferris from the actual antagonist of the story, Principal Rooney, as he is about to tell Ferris and Jeannie's parents about how Ferris faked being sick for the day.
Throughout the film, Ferris doesn't always know where he's going, sometimes literally, but he does know that he is going to enjoy the ride.
We must keep in mind, to quote Ferris Bueller, a person should not believe in an ism.
Whether you can remember what you were doing in 1985, or if you weren't even born yet, get ready to accompany Ferris, Sloan, and Cameron.
As we relearn, or maybe learn for the first time, some rules taught to us by Ferris and the gang.
And we'll answer questions like, what makes this such an amazing coming-of-age story? And what does Ferris Bueller's day off even have to do with being neurodivergent? Guess you'll have to call it sick and keep listening to find out.
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