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QUEEN OF THE SUN: What Are the Bees Telling Us? is a profound, alternative look at the global bee crisis from award-winning filmmaker Taggart Siegel, director of REAL DIRT ON FARMER JOHN . Taking us on a journey through the catastrophic disappearance of bees and the mysterious world of the beehive, this engaging and ultimately uplifting film weaves an unusual and dramatic story of the heartfelt struggles of beekeepers, scientists and philosophers from around the world including Michael Pollan, Gunther Hauk and Vandana Shiva. Together they reveal both the problems and the solutions in renewing a culture in balance with nature.

Dear Friends of Queen of the Sun,

As important as the bees, are our seeds. And the two are deeply interconnected.

We are very excited that Academy-Award winning actress Marisa Tomei, an advocate for humanitarian causes and the importance of healthy food, has joined us as Executive Producer for our new documentary, SEED! After watching QUEEN OF THE SUN, Marisa contacted us out of the blue and asked us how she could help. We’re so honored to have Marisa’s passionate support. We are working together to help bring SEED to a wider audience.

Marisa shares her passion for seeds in our new Kickstarter video for our FINAL PUSH to bring SEED to completion. This is a brand-new SEED movie trailer, and we’re thrilled to share it with you!

In the past hundred years, 94% percent of our seed diversity has been lost.

SEED: The Untold Story, a feature-length documentary film, tells the harrowing and heartening story of humans’ 12,000-year relationship with seeds. As many irreplaceable seeds are nearing extinction, SEED unveils a David and Goliath battle for their future. The film follows an absorbing journey into “doomsday” seed vaults, the colorful dedication of seed savers, and the world of indigenous tribes, who strive to protect our sacred seed ancestry. SEED celebrates the mystery, power and essential nature of seeds. Entertaining and engaging, SEED will ignite the imagination of audiences, inspiring them to be part of a brave new movement dedicated to safeguarding our world’s sustainable future.

Please share this new video with your friends to help us finish SEED. CLICK HERE to visit the official Kickstarter page and share the link with your community.

We want this film to be amazing. The seed movement deserves no less.

 Every dollar contributed here is deeply appreciated. Kickstarter is all or nothing. This means that to receive the money pledged we must meet our funding goal within the funding period.

Let’s gather together to create an inspiring, uplifting film.

Warmly,

Taggart, Jon and the SEED Team

Queen of the Sun will be celebrating our US TELEVISION PREMIERE on Free Speech TV Monday evening at 6:30 AM, 10 AM & 7 PM PST, September 30. We are very excited to be premiering in potentially over 30 million television homes nationwide!

CLICK HERE TO FIND THE NEXT AIR DATE

Queen of the Sun will be airing regularly throughout the fall harvest season. We’re so excited for the film to reach such a incredible wide audience. Not sure if you get Free Speech TV? You do! They stream their broadcasting live on-line. That means anyone reading this can watch Queen of the Sun from Free Speech TV’s website during the broadcast.! TUNE IN ON FREESPEECH.ORG to find when the air date is coming up and watch Queen of the Sun!

Here’s some details on how to find FSTV on your Television: Free Speech TV is an independent, 24-hour television network airing full-time on DISH Network (9415), DIRECTV (348), and Burlington Telecom (122). FSTV is also available—as both a 24/7 linear feed and as videos-on-demand—on www.freespeech.org and on Roku, an “over-the-top” distribution platform that streams video over the Internet onto connected television sets.

Today is a day for celebration here at the Collective Eye and Queen of the Sun! The QUEEN OF THE SUN: What are the Bees Telling Us? DVD is now available for Home Use.

WATCH INSTANT (does not include 16 languages or special features)

This DVD includes bonus features including:

• A Tour of Wild & Wonderful Beehives
• How you can Help
• Over 25 Amazing Bee Facts
• “Bug Song” Music Video
• Yvon Recites Poetry to his Bees
• Interviews with Gunther Hauk & Vandana Shiva and more!

Perhaps most exciting to us, with this new DVD we have been laboring incredibly hard along with a group of dedicated friends and translators from many countries. They’ve translated the film into a whopping 16 LANGUAGES (!) We’re so excited to be able to better reach an international audience all around the globe who has helped make QUEEN OF THE SUN a film with earth-wide impact.

Beginning today, we’re NOW SHIPPING the DVD!

Also soon to come:

• A full-color QUEEN OF THE SUN BOOK put out by Clairview Press with original essays on bees, the global bee decline and the philosophy of sustainable beekeeping by Gunther Hauk, Johannes Wirz, Kerry Grefig, David Heaf, Jacqueline Freeman, Horst Kornberger and poetry by U.K. Poet Laureate Carol Ann Duffy

• A QUEEN OF THE SUN App for Mobile Devices with all of the Extras featured on the DVD!

Please tell your friends to watch this wonderful and inspiring film. Let’s make a 2012 a year for the BEES!

Warmest Regards to all of you,

Taggart, Jon & The Queen of the Sun Team

“Bioneers is inspiring a shift to live on Earth in ways that honor the web of life, each other and future generations.”

This is the core mission of Bioneers, a non-profit organization promoting “revolution from the heart of nature.” Taggart Siegel, the director of “Queen of the Sun: What Are the Bees Telling Us?” attended their annual three-day conference held in San Rafael, CA last month where our film was one of several featured screenings. The title of this year’s conference was “From Breakdown to Breakthrough: Transforming Civilization in the Age of Nature,” a theme that speaks directly to our relationship with honey bees and the need to rebuild a world that nurtures the pollinators so vital to a sustainable future.

People came from all over the world to discuss and explore new ways to foster ecological innovation and harmony with nature.

The weekend was chock-full of inspiring programs and activities focused on topics from “Grassroots Healthcare Models”  to “Developing an Ecology of Love,”  and in between events, delicious sustainably farmed food was enjoyed by all. In addition, Gunther Hauk, a biodynamic beekeeper featured in the film, hosted a powerful workshop about Colony Collapse Disorder and what we must  do to reverse the tragic cycle of honey bee decline. To learn more about Gunther, visit the website for Spikenard Farm and Honeybee Sanctuary.

The energy surrounding this dialogue was truly inspiring, and with many biodynamic beekeepers in attendance, the future of bees was a fundamental piece of the conversation. Bees provide an ideal illustration for the type of mutual cooperation and connectivity that the Bioneers goals pursue. Pollination is the thread that unites flora and fauna, and the bees remind us of the importance of preserving the delicate balance of nature and of using it as a model for our own society. Taggart and and Gunther were honored to be a part of this event, and the film was well-received by an ethusiastic full house.

This month, the film also screened at another conference hosted by the Biodynamic Association in the UK. This event focuses directly on “The Future of Agriculture” and features interactive workshops that emphasize a biodynamic approach to farming. One workshop specifically explores solutions to bee decline, recognizing bees as “the heart of the biodynamic farm.” This workshop is taught by Heidi Herrmann, one of the founding members of the Natural Beekeeping Trust, an organization we were lucky enough to work with on Taggart’s recent trip to Europe.

Here at “Queen of the Sun: What are the Bees Telling Us?” we have been incredibly moved by the overwhelming fervor of so many people coming together to support this cause. If you missed these conferences, don’t forget that you can host your own Community Screening or pre-order your copy of the DVD soon to be released. There is still a long way to go to ensure future stability for the bees and for the planet, but if the Bioneers and Biodynamic Association Conferences were an indication of positive change, we know that together we can save the bees!