Maya the Bee (film)
Maya the Bee (promoted theatrically as Maya the Bee Movie) is a 2014 3D German-Australian computer-animated comedy adventure film directed by Alexs Stadermann, loosely based on the 1975 anime Maya the Honey Bee as well as indirectly the German children's book The Adventures of Maya the Bee by Waldemar Bonsels. It features the voices of Coco Jack Gillies, Kodi Smit-McPhee, Noah Taylor, Richard Roxburgh, Jacki Weaver, Justine Clarke, The Umbilical Brothers, and Miriam Margolyes. It was released theatrically in Australia on 1 November 2014, and also in United States and Canada on 8 March 2015.
| Maya the Bee | |
|---|---|
 Theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | Alexs Stadermann |
| Produced by | Barbara Stephen Thorsten Wegener |
| Written by | Fin Edquist Marcus Sauermann |
| Based on | Maya the Bee by Waldemar Bonsels |
| Starring |
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| Music by | Ute Engelhardt |
| Edited by | Adam Smith |
Production company |
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| Distributed by | StudioCanal[1] Universum Film (Germany)[2] |
Release date |
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Running time | 87 minutes[3] |
| Country | |
| Language |
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| Box office | $14,361,000[4][lower-alpha 1] |
Summary
Maya is born in a world of rules, but when she discovers villainous Buzzlina Von Beena's plot to steal the Queen's royal jelly, Maya is banished from the hive and into the meadow. With her best friend Willi tagging along, Maya meets a young hornet named Sting. Together they have to stop the plot and the fight between the bees and the hornets before it's too late.
Voice cast
- Coco Jack Gillies as Maya, a cute and tomboyish young bee girl.[5]
- Kodi Smit-McPhee as Willi, Maya's best friend.[6]
- Joel Franco as Sting, a young Hornet, Maya and Willy's best friend and sidekick
- Richard Roxburgh as Flip, a grasshopper[6]
- Justine Clarke as Miss Cassandra, teacher at the bee school and Maya's mother figure[6]
- Jacki Weaver as Buzzlina Von Beena, the royal counselor of the beehive, Maya's arch-enemy.[6]
- Andy McPhee as Hank, the leader of hornets, Sting's father, Bees friends and former arch-rivals[6]
- Miriam Margolyes as The Queen, the mother of Bees.[6]
- David Collins as Arnie, an ant soldier, Paul's right-hand[6]
- Shane Dundas as Barney, an ant soldier, Arnie's partner and Paul's right-hand[6]
- Jimmy James Eaton as Paul, an ant colonel, the leader of ants[6]
- Heather Mitchell as The Nurse, chief of the worker bees[6]
- Noah Taylor as Crawley, the hilariously bumbling of the beehive, The Queen's loyal assistant and Buzzlina's former henchman[6]
- Cameron Ralph as Momo, a moth[6]
- Glenn Fraser as Kurt, a dung beetle[6]
- Heather Mitchell as Thekla, a spider[6]
- Stavroula Mountzouris as Lara, a ladybug, Willy's love interest[6]
- Sam Haft as Drago, a dragonfly[6]
- Andrea Libman as Toad, a Frog[6] (Uncredited)
- Rebecca Shoichet as Bats, Some Flying Bats[6] (Uncredited)
Production
Animation World Network announced in May 2013 that Universum Film would distribute all German rights of the film.[7] The film is directed by Alexs Stadermann, and produced by Patrick Elmendorff and Thorsten Wegener from Studio 100 Animation; Jim Ballantine and Barbara Stephen from Buzz Studios.[8][3] The film was produced in association with Flying Bark Productions and ZDF.[9][10] This film was Julia Sawalha film debut as she voiced the role of Maya. Gillies was 9 years old at the time of production.[3][6]
Reception
Maya the Bee received mixed reviews from critics, scoring a 47% in Rotten Tomatoes with an average rating of 5.59/10 from seventeen reviews.[11] Frank Hatherley from Screen Daily stated that "this merry movie is for young children, mainly girls: step aside, Dora the Explorer!" with vivid colours and plenty of unthreatening action.[3]
Accolades
| Award | Category | Subject | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| Asia Pacific Screen Award | Best Animated Feature Film | Barbara Stephen & Thorsten Wegener | Nominated |
| Bavarian Film Award | Best Animated Film | Patrick Elemendorff & Thorsten Wegener | Won |
| Screen Producers Australia Award | Best Feature Film Production | Barbara Stephen & Thorsten Wegener | Nominated |
| Seattle International Film Festival | Youth Jury Award | Alexs Stadermann | Nominated |
| Stockholm International Film Festival | Grand Jury Prize for Best Film | Nominated | |
Sequel
See also
Notes
- As of November 2014.
References
- Groves, Don (3 November 2014). "Maya the Bee Movie, Aussie WW1 movie unleashed". If Magazine. The Intermedia Group. Retrieved 23 September 2017.
- "Maya the Bee Movie". LUMIERE. European Audiovisual Observatory. Retrieved 23 September 2017.
- Frank Hatherley (24 October 2014). "Maya The Bee Movie". Screen Daily. Retrieved 21 January 2015.
- "MAYA THE BEE MOVIE". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved 21 January 2015.
- Scott Roxborough (5 November 2014). "AFM: Shout! Takes 'Maya The Bee' for North America". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 21 January 2015.
- "Everyone's favourite little bee Maya makes her big screen debut in Maya the Bee Movie". Flying Bark Productions. Archived from the original on 21 January 2015. Retrieved 21 January 2015.
- Jennifer Wolfe (20 May 2013). "Studio 100 Launches 'Maya the Bee' Animated Feature". Animation World Network. Retrieved 21 January 2015.
- Patrick Frater (10 November 2014). "Shout! Factory Takes North America on 'Maya The Bee Movie'". Variety. Retrieved 20 January 2015.
- Jerry Beck (18 January 2015). "TRAILER: "Maya The Bee"". Indiewire. Archived from the original on 20 June 2015. Retrieved 21 January 2015.
- Etan Vlessing (8 May 2012). "Canada's Thunderbird Films Steers 'Maya the Bee' into North America". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 21 January 2015.
- "Maya The Bee Movie (2015)". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved 6 May 2020.
External links
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