Maya the Bee (film)
Maya the Bee (promoted theatrically as Maya the Bee Movie) is a 2014 3D computer-animated comedy adventure film directed by Alexs Stadermann, loosely based on the 1975 anime "Maya the 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 . Summary. Freshly hatched bee Maya is a little whirlwind and simply won't follow the rules of the hive. One of the rules, of course, she is not allowed to trust the other bugs, especially the hornets, that live beyond a camp in the meadow. But cute sweet little Maya can't help but make friends with all kinds of other bugs, including a violin-playing grasshopper, a dung beetle and even a young hornet named Sting, who has a hatred of bees. Production. Animation World Network announced in May 2013 that Universum Film would distribute all German rights of  the film. 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. The film was produced in association with Flying Bark Productions and ZDF. This film was Coco Jack Gillies film debut as she voiced the role of Maya. Gillies was 9 years old at the time of production. 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. 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.