20,000 Species of Bees (Spanish: 20.000 especies de abejas) is a 2023 Spanish drama film written and directed by Estibaliz Urresola Solaguren in her debut feature. It stars Sofía Otero, Patricia López Arnaiz, Ane Gabarain, and Itziar Lazkano. The film narrates the story of Lucía, an eight-year-old transgender girl, who is on a quest for identity. During a summer in a village house linked to beekeeping, she explores her femininity alongside the women of her family, who at the same time reflect on their own.[3]
It was selected to compete for the Golden Bear at the 73rd Berlin International Film Festival, where it had its world premiere on 22 February 2023.[4] Nine-year old Sofía Otero won the Silver Bear for Best Leading Performance for the role of Lucía.[5] The film was also nominated for Best Feature Film Teddy Award.[6] Estibaliz Urresola Solaguren, the first feature director was nominated for GWFF Best First Feature Award in the festival.[7] In March 2023, the film won Golden Biznaga for Best Spanish Film at the 26th Málaga Film Festival.[8] It was released in cinemas in Spain on 21 April 2023.[9] The film was shortlisted for submission to 96th Academy Awards as Spanish entry for Best International Feature Film in September 2023.[10][11]
Synopsis
The film tells the story of a transgender girl and the effect her identity has on her family.[12][13]
To help ensure an accurate portrayal, the director worked with Naizen [eu; es], a regional association for the families of transgender minors, and they also provided guidance for Otero.[14]
In the film, the family crosses borders, including the one that separates Bayonne, France from Laudio/Llodio in Spanish Basque Country.[15]
In July 2021, Estibaliz Urresola Solaguren was selected in the Mediterranean Film Institute (MFI), MFI Script 2 Film Workshops, which focuses on the field of training, specialising in script and project development.[16] She also took part in the Berlinale Co-Production Market, feature-film project in 2022. The film was one of the 19 official selected projects for the 2022 Berlinale Co-Production Market. Inicia Films and Gariza Films took charge of the production.[17][18]
The cast was finalized as: Sofía Otero as Lucía, Patricia López Arnaiz as Ane, Ane Gabarain as Lourdes, Itziar Lazkano as Lita, Sara Cózar as Leire Martxelo Rubio as Gorka along with Miguel Garcés, Unax Hayden and Andere Garabieta.[9]
It was theatrically released in Spain on 21 April 2023.[9]
It was reported on 14 January 2023 that Paris-based Luxbox has acquired the international sales right of the film, whereas BTeam Pictures will release the film in Spain.[23]Film Movement acquired North-American distribution rights to the film.[24]
On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, 93% of 42 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 7.5/10. The website's consensus reads: "Led by young Sofía Otero's outstanding performance, 20,000 Species of Bees explores an array of weighty themes with gentle humanity."[34]Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned the film a score of 80 out of 100, based on nine critics, indicating "generally favorable" reviews.[35]
Alfonso Rivera, reviewing the film for Cineuropa, praised Estibaliz Urresola Solaguren writing, "the filmmaker addresses plurality, exploration and transformation with a stratospheric sensitivity." Rivera praising performances of Patricia López Arnaiz, Ane Gabarain and Sofía Otero wrote, "superb work by her actresses, but there are not enough adjectives to commend Sofía Otero (keep an eye on her, it is impossible not to succumb to her talent)."[36]
Nicholas Bell in IonCinema.com gave the film a score of three out of five, writing, "Touching and without being overly sentimental, Solaguren uses the titular diversity of bees to suggest our authentic roles all play an important part if we are to move beyond surviving to actually thriving".[37]
The Hollywood Reporter's Jordan Mintzer called the film "A compassionate coming-of-ager" and praised Otero and Arnaiz's performances, calling the former "clearly the centerpiece of the film". Mintzer concluded: "20,000 Species of Bees returns to Ane's [Arnaiz's] loving — most memorably at the very close of the film when she not only firmly stands by her youngest child's bold decision, but appears to be empowered by it. As are we."[38]
The film featured in compilation '15 films that stood out at Berlin 2023' of ScreenDaily.[39]
Lee Marshall of Screen International praised Otero's performance, writing, "Sofía Otero is never less than compelling, her face a deep pool that becomes a magnet for the audience". In her concluding paragraph, she compared the film's climactic sequence of people on a search for a missing girl to a similar sequence in the 1973 film The Spirit of the Beehive (which in turn served as an homage to Frankenstein): "It's a masterful touch in an engaging, authentic, moving film about the way society persists in seeing monsters where there are none."[40]
Top ten lists
The film appeared on a number of critics' top ten lists of the best Spanish films of 2023:ç
20,000 Species of Bees was nominated for European Discovery – Prix FIPRESCI in the 36th European Film Awards on 7 November.[46] The awards ceremony took place on 9 December in Berlin.[47]
