Follow the Protocol

Summary

“Follow the Protocol” (2022) follows Francisco, who has spent ten months in a self-imposed lockdown. His carefully controlled isolation has protected him from the outside world, but it has also left him lonely, frustrated, and increasingly focused on one basic human need: sex. When he decides to pursue intimacy, he must confront the practical and emotional complications created by pandemic-era rules, fear, and social distance. The film centers on Francisco and the people he encounters as he tries to balance desire with caution. Its setup allows the story to explore the awkwardness of reconnecting after prolonged isolation, as well as the uncertainty of navigating attraction when every interaction seems to require a risk assessment. Rather than treating lockdown solely as a historical backdrop, the movie uses it to examine how confinement can reshape a person’s habits, expectations, and ability to relate to others. With a premise that combines sexual frustration, social anxiety, and pandemic absurdity, “Follow the Protocol” is a compact character-driven story about loneliness and the need for physical and emotional connection. Its central themes include the conflict between safety and spontaneity, the psychological effects of isolation, and the way rules can offer comfort while also becoming barriers to living fully. Francisco’s attempt to reenter the world gives the film an intimate, potentially comic lens on a period when even ordinary human contact became complicated.