<\/p>\n
James Cameron doesn\u2019t just want to show you the internal politics of a hive; he wants to change how you see your own species.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe are the despicable creatures,\u201d the Academy Award-winning executive producer says of humanity\u2019s impact on the natural world. The comment, made during a recent Q&A for National Geographic\u2019s Secrets of the Bees<\/em>, got a laugh from the intimate crowd of press \u2014 but the philosophy behind it is no joke.<\/p>\n More from Gold Derby<\/strong><\/p>\n The series, which resists turning nature into a simple story of heroes and villains, instead uses a “bee’s-eye view” to focus on how these vital insects actually behave in the wild. Led by National Geographic Explorer Bertie Gregory, the two-part event explores the extraordinary lives of bees, which are among the planet\u2019s most important animals. Over three years, special cameras opened a rare window into a single hive, revealing a hidden world of astonishing architecture and intelligence.<\/p>\n With more than 20,000 bee species pollinating one-third of the world\u2019s food, Secrets of the Bees<\/em> pairs Cameron\u2019s storytelling instincts with the expertise of entomologist Dr. Sammy Ramsey to unlock the secrets of a species far more complex than most audiences expect. The series premieres March 31 on Nat Geo and streams April 1 on Disney+ and Hulu.<\/p>\n Even for Ramsey, who has spent his career studying insects, some of what the team captured was completely unexpected.<\/p>\n \u201cOne of those huge, jaw-dropping moments for me,\u201d he said, came while watching Asian honeybees fend off an invading hornet \u2014 not by brute force, but by outsmarting it using pungent leaves to mask the hornet’s pheromone trail. It was a display of strategic adaptation that scientists had never documented on film before.<\/p>\n Up until now, that behavior had only been theorized or glimpsed in still images. \u201cThis is the first time that\u2019s ever been shown on video,\u201d Ramsey said.<\/p>\n Cameron, naturally, couldn\u2019t resist putting it in more cinematic terms. As Ramsey described the showdown, the filmmaker joked that it played out less like a nature doc and more like \u201ca giant bitch fight,\u201d comparing it to \u201cSigourney Weaver versus the alien queen.\u201d<\/p>\n Moments like that are what drew Cameron to the project in the first place \u2014 not just what science already knows, but what it\u2019s still discovering.<\/p>\n \u201cThere\u2019s two levels to \u2018secrets,\u2019\u201d Cameron explained. \u201cThere\u2019s the secrets that science knows that the public doesn\u2019t know \u2014 and then there are a few secrets that the bees have managed to keep from science until this exact project.\u201d<\/p>\n And while the series doesn\u2019t get lost in the weeds, it does highlight just how surprising these creatures can be. At one point, Ramsey pointed to bees\u2019 ability to pass along information within a hive \u2014 something that still catches people off guard.<\/p>\n \u201cTo be able to see bumblebees teach each other \u2014 how is that not the coolest thing in the world?\u201d he said.<\/p>\n Of course, capturing behavior no one has ever seen before requires more than patience \u2014 it takes some seriously cutting-edge filmmaking.<\/p>\n At one point during production, Ramsey recalled being handed a massive piece of equipment on set.<\/p>\n \u201cThey’re like, \u2018Could you hold this for a second?\u2019\u201d Ramsey said. \u201cDon\u2019t worry, it\u2019s only $150,000.\u201d<\/p>\n Moments like that underscored the level of precision \u2014 and investment \u2014 behind the series. But when it came to filming inside the hive, the approach was entirely different.<\/p>\n The team built custom environments that allowed bees to behave naturally while tiny lenses \u2014 including medical-grade endoscopic cameras \u2014 captured their world from inches away.<\/p>\n The result is what Cameron describes as something closer to stepping into the bees\u2019 perspective.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019re trying to be in the bees\u2019 point of view and observe their behavior,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n For Cameron, that process blurs the line between filmmaking and research.<\/p>\n \u201cWhen you wind up with hundreds of thousands of hours of observation of certain species, you learn things,\u201d he said. \u201cThe sharing of the story becomes a form of science itself.\u201d<\/p>\n That commitment to observation extends to how the story itself is told.<\/p>\n \u201cWe can\u2019t just make up stories,\u201d Cameron said. \u201cWe can\u2019t anthropomorphize this or project ourselves onto it.\u201d<\/p>\n Instead of forcing a narrative onto the natural world, the series leans into what\u2019s actually happening \u2014 even when it challenges human assumptions.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019re all just trying to do the same thing,\u201d Cameron added \u2014 comparing humans with every other animal species. \u201cGet by, feed our kids, and keep a reasonably peaceful society going.\u201d<\/p>\n For both Cameron and Ramsey, the challenge isn\u2019t just documenting the natural world\u2014it\u2019s getting audiences to connect with it.<\/p>\n \u201cYou won\u2019t protect what you don\u2019t love,\u201d Cameron said. \u201cAnd you\u2019re not going to love what you don\u2019t understand.\u201d<\/p>\n That\u2019s why Secrets of the Bees<\/em> leans into storytelling\u2014not to sensationalize the science, but to make it accessible.<\/p>\n \u201cThere are problems, but we can fix them,\u201d Ramsey said, emphasizing the importance of striking a balance between urgency and hope by addressing the “Three Ps” of bee decline: Parasites, Pesticides, and Poor nutrition. Instead of overwhelming audiences, the goal is to leave them with something more tangible.<\/p>\n \u201cYou\u2019ve got to give people a challenge,\u201d Cameron said. \u201cGive them something actionable that makes them feel that they have agency.\u201d Or, as he put it more simply, the takeaway is bigger than bees.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019re like bees,\u201d Cameron said. \u201cWe collectively make a difference.\u201d<\/p>\n And if Secrets of the Bees<\/em> does its job, audiences might start seeing them \u2014 and themselves \u2014 a little differently.<\/p>\n Best of Gold Derby<\/strong><\/p>\n Sign up for Gold Derby’s Newsletter<\/a>. For the latest news, follow us on Facebook<\/a>, Twitter<\/a>, and Instagram<\/a>.<\/p>\nWatch the full Q&A with James Cameron and Dr. Sammy Ramsey<\/h3>\n
What surprised even the experts<\/h3>\n
The $150,000 lens (and how they got the shot)<\/h3>\n
No shortcuts in the storytelling<\/h3>\n
Why it matters (and why people will care)<\/h3>\n