A movie about beekeeping in Macedonia probably isn’t going to be high on many radars, but there’s a reason why Honeyland won a trio of awards at the Sundance Film Festival. Dominating the documentary categories, Tamara Kotevska and Ljubmoir Stevanov’s film arrives next month with some of the year’s best reviews, and now you can get a glimpse as to why.
Honeyland centers on Hatidze, a beekeeper who uses old school techniques both in life and to ply her trade. Her world gets thrown into upheaval with the arrival of some unruly neighbors who take up the trade but refuse to have Hatidze’s discipline.
Here’s the synopsis: Hatidze lives with her ailing mother in the mountains of Macedonia, making a living cultivating honey using ancient beekeeping traditions. When an unruly family moves in next door, what at first seems like a balm for her solitude becomes a source of tension as they, too, want to practice beekeeping, while disregarding her advice. The most awarded film out of this year’s Sundance Film Festival, winning the World Cinema Grand Jury Prize, a Special Jury Award for Cinematography, and another Special Jury Award for Originality. HONEYLAND is an epic, visually stunning portrait of the delicate balance between nature and humanity that has something sweet for everyone.
Every few years a documentary emerges that strikes the right chord with audiences and becomes an unexpected hit. Could Honeyland be that film for 2019? We’ll find out when it opens on July 26th.
