[2019 / Macedonia / Turkish with English subtitles / 85 mins]
The last in a long line of Macedonian beekeepers, Hatidze Muratova ekes out a living harvesting wild honey deep in the Balkan mountains and walking four hours to the nearest city.
Her bucolic existence is disrupted by the arrival of a nomadic cattle-herding family, with their roaring engines and rambunctious children. Despite Hatidze’s open-hearted welcome to her new neighbours, conflicts soon erupt, exposing fundamental tensions between sustainability and exploitation.
Featuring the gorgeous, award-winning cinematography of an epic, HONEYLAND is nonetheless clearly built from an intimate collaboration between filmmakers and subject. With a surprising sense of humour, this tough and tender portrait of a fast-disappearing way of life is an unforgettable testament to one extraordinary woman’s resilience – and her determination to restore natural balance.
This must-see cinematic marvel swept the World Cinema Documentary awards at the 2019 Sundance Film Festival.