Keeping the Bees

Ayşe returns to her hometown in northeastern Turkey to nurse her gravely ill mother. Before she dies, Ayse’s mother tells her that she will leave Ayse her much loved bee hives to manage. Ayse’s modern life has moved her away from the mountains of her childhood – a life in which the bees and their honey were central. But she puts her city life on hold to manage the bees, which provide a distraction from her grief. Ayse slowly starts to work with the local bee keeper to manage the hives but finds the lessons of her childhood are buried deep and the hives are more difficult to manage than she remembers. Ayse’s failure to pay needful attention to local advice sees her mothers bee hives seriously damaged, if not lost forever. What’s more a Caucasian bear becomes a real threat to her hives and her life.

Directed by Eylem Kaftan, Keeping the Bees leans on a strong ensemble — Meryem Uzerli, Feyyaz Duman, Hakan Karsak — to carry a story that balances spectacle with character.

The film landed with audiences for its craft and performances, and remains one of the most talked-about drama titles of 2019.