20.000 especies de abejas (20.000 Species of Bees)

Eigh-year-old Cocó's (Sofía Otero) entourage insists on calling her Aitor, even though she no longer recognises herself in that name and even less in the expectations it brings. Cocó, however, is not the only one coping with doubts and fears. While Cocó's mother Ane is going through a professional and emotional crisis, they are spending the summer at her headstrong grandmother Lita's house. Tensions arise. Debutant filmmaker Estibaliz Urresola Solaguren leads us into the precarious reality of beekeeping with apt self-assurance and a documentary approach, capturing a delicate coming-of-age story reminiscent of the works of Lucrecia Martel and Céline Sciamma. Otero's magnetic performance earned her a Silver Bear in what has been called one of the most important Spanish films of the last decade.

“Estibaliz Urresola Solaguren's accomplished debut feature treats its eight-year-old protagonist's gender crisis with care and compassion, but is also attentive to wider familial rhythms and conflicts.” – Variety