Ben Knight's short doc The Last Honey Hunter shares the story of Maule Dhan Kulung, the last man in Saadi, Nepal who knows the ancient ways of harvesting a rare, medicinal and hallucinogenic honey from jungle cliffs deep in the remote valleys of eastern Nepal. The Last Honey Hunter follows Maule on what is to be his last trip trip to the cliffs without anyone having been determined to be the one who will replace him. 

Maule had a dream when he was a young man. The dream involved forest spirits called Rangkemi that granted him, and him alone, safe passage to collect the lucrative honey. Now unable to continue his journeys, there is no one to continue this divinely inspired tradition. 

The Last Honey Hunter is very much a Heartland kind of film and unsurprisingly a finalist for the top prize at Heartland's inaugural Indy Shorts Film fest going on July 26th - 29th at the Indianapolis Museum of Art at Newfields. Exquisitely photographed, The Last Honey Hunter centers around the compelling figure of Maule, a humble and very matter-of-fact man whose entire life has been devoted to this quest. 

The Last Honey Hunter is screening as part of the Finalist Shorts 2 Collection at:

• Friday, July 27th at 4:30pm inside The Toby at Newfields
• Saturday, July 28th at 3:45pm inside The Toby at Newfields. 

For more information on Indy Shorts, visit the festival's official website. 

© Written by Richard Propes
The Independent Critic