Becoming Orangutan

A Wild Education explores how the curriculum works through the eyes of a brand-new arrival at the Nyaru Menteng Orangutan Rehabilitation Centre. Little does this baby know what her future will hold as she’s enrolled in nursery school and she takes the first steps towards mastering a curriculum that includes climbing, nest building, and foraging. Tiny Topan’s journey is juxtaposed with the story of 16-year-old male Kasper who faces graduation as he is released into the wild.

Lean on Me investigates how making friends can be the difference between success and failure. As three recent arrivals attend their first day of class, older students explore the complex and navigate the often complex relationships they form during their schooling. From the ‘bromance’ between young males Valentino, Yutris, and Madara, to fan-favourite Big Boy Beni being the target of a bully, these stories illustrate how the relationships these orphans form are fundamental in their journey to becoming orangutans.

Growing Pains introduces new perspectives on the young apes’ emotional development, as they navigate the stages of growing up. The orangutan students must master all survival skills while on their journey through the curriculum, and that’s on top of the awkwardness of puberty. Dilla’s future changes unexpectedly when she falls pregnant, jeopardising the progress she had made. Meanwhile, Clara and her daughter Clarita face the ultimate transition, a release into the wild. Big Boy Beni struggles with his own ‘growing pains’ as he’s put on an urgent diet.