Screening times:
Friday, July 19, 6:30 PM
Saturday, July 20, 6:30 PM - Half-capacity screening
Estibaliz Urresola Solaguren | Spain | 2024 | 128m | Spanish, Basque, French with English subtitles
with Sofía Otero, Patricia López Arnaiz, Ane Gabarain, Itziar Lazkano
In a small, sleepy village in the Basque Country, a sculptor named Ane and her three children arrive at her mother Lita's home for summer vacation. They are surrounded by extended family and nosy neighbors. Ane and her mother's relationship is strained. Lita disapproves of her daughter's frayed marriage, career as an artist, and the way she parents her obstinate and mischievous children. Chief among them is eight-year-old Aitor, nicknamed Coco after it becomes clear that being referred to as Aitor elicits feelings of distress in the child. However, born biologically male, neither the birth name nor the nickname feel quite right, and Ane’s concern for her child grows as Coco becomes more withdrawn.
The child’s only respite lies in the Basque hills, where Ane's aunt Lourdes tends to the family's beekeeping farm. Among the peaceful humming of bees and Lourdes' open-minded guardianship, Coco slowly begins to confide in family and friends her discomfort in her body, eventually voicing a desire to be treated as a girl. As Coco explores her own developing identity over the summer, Ane and the rest of her family in turn must learn to accept the child as she is.
Basque director Estibaliz Urresola Solaguren’s assured debut feature is a wonderfully sensitive work carried by the Berlinale Silver Bear-winning lead performance of newcomer Sofía Otero as Coco. An authentic and heart-wrenching story of transition, 20,000 Species of Bees offers a cinematic experience exploring gender, sexuality and identity.
"Warmly humanist and deeply empathetic first feature… announcing the arrival of a bold new filmmaking voice." -Mark Kermode, Sight & Sound
"The film blooms in moments where, instead of literally addressing Coco's gender trouble, we’re simply allowed to inhabit it." -Diega Semerene, Slant Magazine
"With this gentle, empathic picture, Urresola joins a conversation that usually plays out as a screaming match, and tones it down to a murmur. It turns out that you hear a lot more that way." -Wendy Ide, Observer (UK)
Silver Bear for Best Leading Performance - Sofía Otero - 2023 Berlin International Film Festival
winner - Official Competition Grand Jury Prize - 2023 Seattle International Film Festival
Best Director - 2023 Athens International Film Festival
Tickets $8.75 ($8 cash at the door if available).
Half capacity
