The Last Beekeeper

Documentary Feature, Spotlight Premieres
D: Jeremy Simmons

Almond milk, almond butter, almond cookies, Almond Joy, almond lotion … almonds are ubiquitous. However, their existence is threatened by the extinction of one very hardworking creature: the bee. Almond trees depend on bees for pollination, and bees are rapidly dying thanks to Colony Collapse Disorder (think bee HIV). This caused Simmons to wonder: What is the fate of all living creatures should bees go extinct? Considering the gravity of the question, it’s obliquely asked, or maybe the fascinating beekeepers Simmons profiles inadvertently cloud the question. Each is enormously captivating, coming to the trade differently but sharing an understanding of their intimate, hands-on work. In the end, it’s an ancillary character that sagely pronounces the upshot of the film: Man has demanded too much for too long from the earth and gives nothing in return. Once those words are spoken, the message the vanishing bees bring is frighteningly clear.

This article appears in March 27 • 2009.

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