Institute
2020
Gecko
Gecko presents its debut feature film Institute, an intimate, funny and moving exploration of what it means to care.
Produced in association with Illuminations, The Space and BBC.
Based on Gecko’s internationally acclaimed stage production and drawing on our reputation for generating unique worlds, intoxicatingly beautiful scenes and breath-taking choreography, this new film is a visually captivating and poetic dissection of the way we nurture and care for ourselves and each other.
In a time when we are potentially more fractured and disconnected than ever before, Institute asks how we care more for each other in the fast-paced, target-driven machinery of modern life?
Who will be there to catch us when we fall?
Set in a shadowy establishment where residents attempt to create order from the chaos of life,
carers become patients, memories fracture and relationships collide.
Premiered on Sunday, 19 July 2020 on BBC Four.
Included as part of the Official Selection for Le Festival International du Film sur l'Art, 2021
Winner of OneDance UK’s Award for Dance on Film 2021
Featured in The Times Viewing Guide and as Critics’ Choice in The Sunday Times
“Every moment of Institute feels carefully and deliberately choreographed, mixing scenes of dramatic interaction with dance, movement and even hints of clowning… However you choose to interpret what is happening to Daniel and Martin, the storytelling is engaging, while the expressiveness of the various scenarios draws the viewer in.”
★★★★ Maryam Philpott, The Reviews Hub
“Institute poses plenty of questions, but suggests no answers. It is an excellent example of the physical theatre that has made Gecko renowned in the field, while its cryptic narrative displays ambition and thoughtfulness.”
★★★★ Greg Stewart, Theatre Weekly
“One of the more striking aspects about the production is that the theatrical origins do not limit transition to the screen… Institute is such a successful TV presentation it becomes hard to imagine if it would have worked so well on stage.”
David Cunningham, British Theatre Guide
