Filtering apparatus for a plastic melt or some other highly viscous fluid, at least comprising: - a housing which has at least: - an inflow plate with at least one inflow channel, - an outflow plate with at least one outflow channel; - at least one spacer element (15, 16) which is arranged between the inflow plate and the outflow plate; - and at least three housing tensioning elements (17.1,..., 17.6), by way of which the inflow plate and the outflow plate are braced against one another while sandwiching the spacer element (15, 16); - a screen wheel: - which is mounted rotatably in the housing between the inflow plate and the outflow plate (11, 12), and - which has a multiplicity of screen points which can each be flowed through and positioned between the inflow channel and the outflow channel, wherein those regions of the screen wheel which can be flowed through and subjected to fluid pressure are situated within a pre-tensioning area spanned by the housing tensioning elements (17.1,..., 17.6), - a drive device with a drive element which exerts an advancing force F V on the screen wheel at an engagement point, - wherein, at the screen wheel, as seen in the direction of rotation, an angle α of greater than 90° and less than 160° is enclosed between a first line, which extends between the centroid of the pre-tensioning area, at which centroid a resultant friction force F R acts, and the central point of the screen wheel, and a second line between the central point and the engagement point, at which an advancing force F V acts; characterized in that the engagement point of the drive device on the screen wheel is arranged outside the pre-tensioning area. - a housing which has at least: - an inflow plate with at least one inflow channel, - an outflow plate with at least one outflow channel; - at least one spacer element (15, 16) which is arranged between the inflow plate and the outflow plate; - and at least three housing tensioning elements (17.1,..., 17.6), by way of which the inflow plate and the outflow plate are braced against one another while sandwiching the spacer element (15, 16); - an inflow plate with at least one inflow channel, - an outflow plate with at least one outflow channel; - at least one spacer element (15, 16) which is arranged between the inflow plate and the outflow plate; - and at least three housing tensioning elements (17.1,..., 17.6), by way of which the inflow plate and the outflow plate are braced against one another while sandwiching the spacer element (15, 16); - a screen wheel: - which is mounted rotatably in the housing between the inflow plate and the outflow plate (11, 12), and - which has a multiplicity of screen points which can each be flowed through and positioned between the inflow channel and the outflow channel, wherein those regions of the screen wheel which can be flowed through and subjected to fluid pressure are situated within a pre-tensioning area spanned by the housing tensioning elements (17.1,..., 17.6), - a drive device with a drive element which exerts an advancing force F V on the screen wheel at an engagement point, - wherein, at the screen wheel, as seen in the direction of rotation, an angle α of greater than 90° and less than 160° is enclosed between a first line, which extends between the centroid of the pre-tensioning area, at which centroid a resultant friction force F R acts, and the central point of the screen wheel, and a second line between the central point and the engagement point, at which an advancing force F V acts; - which is mounted rotatably in the housing between the inflow plate and the outflow plate (11, 12), and - which has a multiplicity of screen points which can each be flowed through and positioned between the inflow channel and the outflow channel, wherein those regions of the screen wheel which can be flowed through and subjected to fluid pressure are situated within a pre-tensioning area spanned by the housing tensioning elements (17.1,..., 17.6), - a drive device with a drive element which exerts an advancing force F V on the screen wheel at an engagement point, - wherein, at the screen wheel, as seen in the direction of rotation, an angle α of greater than 90° and less than 160° is enclosed between a first line, which extends between the centroid of the pre-tensioning area, at which centroid a resultant friction force F R acts, and the central point of the screen wheel, and a second line between the central point and the engagement point, at which an advancing force F V acts;