People are waking up every morning unaware that the world economy consumes, on average, enough resources for 1.5 planets. That’s just an average. MIT university professor Otto Scharmer says that the United States is consuming resources at a rate applicable to five planets. Perhaps it’s time we, the human race, look in the mirror, slap ourselves in the face and say: “We are stealing our children’s future.” Sixty-six million children at school in developing countries sit hungry in classes, while one-third of all food production ends up in the trash. Do we not have a moral responsibility, as people who are a part of this planet, whose lives depends on the air we pollute and the water we overrun with plastics?
Half a century ago, people were producing and used only as much as they needed — they were self-sustaining. Now, the rules of consumerism and market-oriented societies underestimate the relationships people have with the community and, of course, nature. Humans have reached a point of no return. There are worldwide zero-waste movements, an emphasis on consumer responsibility and ethical approaches. The worldwide political elite and global development agencies make plans and plot agendas to tackle the environmental problems we face. Experts, professionals, companies dictate how we need to alter our behavior for the good of the planet. And yet, the individual acts as if nothing they do would ever be enough, shirking the responsibility, as if sustainable development could only ever be achieved by massive non-governmental organizations, or NGOs.
That is not the story of Hatidze Muratova, a rural woman from Bekirlija, North Macedonia, the last wild beekeeper. Her story, depicted in the documentary film “Honeyland,” has crossed oceans. It was a hit at the 2019 Sundance Awards, and is now nominated for two Academy Awards, in the Best International Feature Film and Best Documentary Feature categories. It is the first film ever to receive a nomination in both categories, an incredible achievement for an independent film, and one with an environmental message to boot.
Hatidze is the heroine of the movie, teaching us a lesson on why it’s important to be in harmony with nature. Tamara Kotevska, who directed the film with Ljubomir Stefanov, explained that Hatidze reminds us in a simple way of what we have forgotten — that we depend on nature, and nature also depends on us.
“That’s why we need to leave half of the resources it makes available to us to use — so that they can be renewed and they will be available to us again,” she said. “This is the basic rule of sustainability: ‘take one half, leave one half behind.’”
Stefanov said that we are living in a time when exploitation of natural resources has reached its peak. “Historically, looking back, today’s usage is bigger than it used to be. There is not much room for optimism here. That dictates power — the wellbeing of a few, at the expense of others.”
Be like Hatidze
“Honeyland’s” Hatidze lives in harmony with nature, with the local resources that she uses responsibly.
“This is the only way she can survive. Awareness of that comes to her naturally. It’s not something she has been taught,” said Stefanov.
Could it be that living outside of ordinary civilization, outside of the “consumerism game,” has kept Hatidze on this path? Hatidze’s principles are not something she shouts about, explained Stefanov. “She lives it. If she takes and uses everything, the next year she won’t survive. It is a universal rule — if you destroy everything, there will be nothing left. But our society teaches us to grab more, as much as we can. No one told Hatidze to do that; her micro-society didn’t teach her that. It’s about survival.”
Kotevska explains that “Honeyland” is a mirror showing the consumerist world in which we all fight today. “Hatidze is 50 years old and has spent her entire life in harmony with nature. The village Bekirlija, where she lives, is not far away from civilization in terms of measurable distance, but it is not connected by a road to drive down with an ordinary vehicle. This has been decisive in helping her to live in balance with nature, in a way that means many who live in towns envy her.
“This woman is never unhappy. She is always smiling, full of life, and very intelligent. It doesn’t matter that she can’t write — she speaks four languages and can communicate with everyone. It’s a contrast to the growing number of high-tech intellectuals living in cities, who are less likely to understand each other and be truly happy. Looking at this woman, even in a movie, people might remember what they have buried deep inside of them: that primal wisdom of life given to every individual from their birth and which must not be forgotten.”
From honey to money
This element was also inspirational to the crew and, the filmmakers hope, to the audiences that view the movie. The film’s producer and editor Atanas Georgiev said that a decent place to live was provided for Hatidze in a village near Bekirlija — Dorfulija — after filming ended. Not so the Sam family, whose arrival, in the course of the film, at a neighboring house disrupts Hatidze’s routine and, ultimately, has disastrously affects on the way she lives her life going forward. Their approach to living off the land seemed to directly oppose that of Hatidze.
“It was important for us that specific changes (that came about as a result of the film) were at a local level — not just for one family but for the whole community,” said Georgiev.
The film’s crew was aware of how they impacted the lives of the film’s protagonists.
“We are aware that we must not allow them to continue living under the conditions (that we leave them in the film with),” added Georgiev.
Much of the crew were a part of the lives of the two families depicted in the film for three years, and witnessed the challenges they have faced, including the threat of honeybee extinction due to the influence of humans.
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Fair and equitable use of land, plants, animals, basically all resources that nature gives us, are at the core of the filmmakers’ ideology too.
“We’ve learned a lot from (making the film). If we compare producing a documentary film with honey harvesting, documentaries are ‘harvesters’ of human stories from real life and their existence, and any future praise or glory that comes from their creation, depends directly on the ‘fruits’ of other people’s life stories,” said Kotevska. “It’s understandable that documentary filmmakers are considered ‘ungrateful’ – they come, they take what they need and leave, but the protagonists live with the consequences of that film for the rest of their life.
“Seeing this, we decided to apply the rules Hatidze taught us; we could not take the full benefit of this fascinating story just for ourselves. We wanted to leave ‘one half’ for them. That’s why, after the filming, we helped Hatidze resolve her existential question. We bought a house in the nearby village of Dorfulija, where there are basic living conditions and she will be closer to her relatives.”
As part of this the “Honeyland” filmmakers are asking for donations to Hatidze, the Sam family and the community that has sprung up in that part of North Macedonia. All those who donate will receive a jar of the honey being produced there in return. The ultimate aim is to raise money for tuition for the eight children from the Sam family.
“With this, hopefully, the eight children of Hussein and Ljutvie (Sam) will have the opportunity to see and learn something more than the destitute destiny that seems is already imposed on them and from which they cannot escape,” said Kotevska. “Everyone should have the choice to go back from where they came and to do what they want, but the most important is to have a choice. The involvement of professionals to work with them is inevitable, but we will talk again about this, after we see what donations come in.”
“Honeyland” is a milestone for North Macedonian cinema. It is the first documentary from any country to receive three awards at Sundance, and the first feature-length documentary to come from the country, majority made by Macedonians, to win prizes of any kind at the festival.
Translated from Macedonian from Natalija Galacheva. Courtesy of Lice v Lice / INSP.ngo