Susan Granger’s review of “Queen of the Sun: What Are the Bees Telling Us?” (Collective Eye, Inc.)
According to Taggart Siegel in this revelatory new documentary, what the honeybees are telling us is that – because of mankind’s manipulation of nature – they’re sick, stressed out and starving.
There’s no doubt that the honeybee population is dwindling around the world – and it’s not really a surprise. Back in 1923, Austrian scientist, philosopher and social innovator Rudolf Steiner predicted that, in 80 to 100 years, honeybee hives would collapse. And he was right.
What is now termed “Colony Collapse Disorder” is prevalent everywhere. Why? What happened?
Answering those questions are world renowned biodynamic beekeeper Gunther Hauk, best-selling “Omnivore’s Dilemma” author Michael Pollan, Indian activist Vandana Shiva and a host of eccentric others – tracing 10,000 years of beekeeping and explaining how the symbiotic relationship between humans and honeybees has been disrupted by profit-driven, highly mechanized industrial practices which involves mono-cropping or planting the same crop over many acres for many years.
Honeybees are a barometer of the health of the world, since they fly millions of miles to keep the earth in bloom and have provided humans with honey, wax and pollination for our food. What if they become extinct?
To prevent that, Gunther Hauk founded Spikenard Farm and Honeybee Sanctuary in Floyd, Virginia. Surrounded by industrial agriculture, he’s created a 600-acre farm to help support the bees in crisis.
Independent filmmaker Taggart Siegel previously made the award-winning “The Real Dirt on Farmer John” about a maverick visionary farmer. This time, he has not only traveled the world but he’s artfully organized his collection of interviews and peppered them with artful animation and stunning, compelling imagery. As co-founder of Collective Eye, Inc., based in Portland, Oregon, and San Francisco, California, Siegel offers hope-laden solutions for positive change, a cultural shift to insure a sustainable, healthy and verdant future.
On the Granger Movie Gauge of 1 to 10, “Queen of the Sun: What Are the Bees Telling Us?” is an alarming, insightful 7, offering a rare glimpse into insects in crisis.
