20 000 Species of Bees

Estibaliz Solaguren's feature film debut is a gripping coming-of-age story about a young girl who, during a summer among her Basque family and their beehives, struggles with her own identity.

Aitor (Sofía Otero) is eight years old and goes with her two siblings and her mother Ane (Patricia López Arnaiz) to the Basque Country in the summer. Between chaotic family gatherings, beehives at their great-aunt Lourdes’ house and beeswax sculptures in his grandfather's old studio, Aitor tries to maneuver between growing discomfort and confusion about his own identity. The protagonist’s identity crisis is mirrored by her mother’s crisis as an artist in this empathic and humanistic film.

In the film, the director consulted Niazen, a regional association for families with transgender minors to ensure as credible a story as possible. The lead role is brilliantly played by Sofía Otero, who at the age of eight is the youngest person ever to win the Silver Bear for best lead role at the Berlinale.

The film is a painful and beautiful story about growing up and the feeling that you don't fit in. It takes up a topic that in today's climate is often polarizing and presents it in a low-key and warm way.

The film will be accompanied by a conversation with the Norwegian organization PKI (Patient Organization for Gender Incongruence).