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Happyend film image; people in AR footage with messages appearing above their heads

Happyend

Showcase

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The first dramatic feature from Ryuichi Sakamoto’s son, Neo Sora (Ryuichi Sakamoto: Opus), is a “story about the near future,” a Japan constantly rocked by earthquakes and plunging toward dystopia. Best friends Kou and Yuta are in their graduating year at high school when one night they pull a major prank on their principal. The knock-on effect is the installation of a high-tech surveillance system. With this totalitarian panopticon and the general ambiance of looming government oppression, things are looking bad for our young rabble-rousers…

Teen comedy and political protest make for a good match in Happyend, and when you add thumping techno tunes; great performances from the two leads; and winning turns from the secondary cast, the result is a blast. Shirô Sano’s cantankerous principal is the perfect foil for Kou and Yuta, and the boys’ antics are all the more winning in the face of his authoritarianism. This zesty, creative, and quite moving film shows that teen hijinks are funny even in the face of catastrophe.

 

Supported by

Media Partner

Director
Cast

Hayato Kurihara, HIDAKA, Yuta Hayashi, Shina Peng, Arazi, Kilala Inori

Credits
Country of Origin

Japan/USA

Year

2024

Language

In Japanese with English subtitles

Film Contact
Links
18+

At Vancouver Playhouse

19+

At Fifth Avenue

113 min
Cinemas of Asia Drama Human Rights & Social Justice
Zakkubalan, Cineric Creative, Cinema Inutile

Book Tickets

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Credits & Director

Executive Producer

Kaoru Hayashi, Douglas Choi, Robina Riccitiello, Ema Ryan Yamazaki

Producer

Albert Tholen, Aiko Masubuchi, Eric Nyari, Alex C. Lo, Anthony Chen

Screenwriter

Neo Sora

Cinematography

Bill Kirstein

Editor

Albert Tholen

Production Design

Norifumi Ataka

Original Music

Lia Ouyang Rusli

Neo Sora headshot; Happyend director

Neo Sora

Raised in New York and Tokyo, Neo Sora is a filmmaker, artist, and translator living between the two cities. He directed the feature-length concert film Ryuichi Sakamoto | Opus (2023) which premiered at Venice. He is the director/writer of the short films The Chicken (Locarno 2020) and Sugar Glass Bottle (Indie Memphis 2022, Best Narrative Short), and was named one of Filmmaker Magazine’s “25 New Faces of Independent Film” in 2021. Happyend is his debut fiction feature as a writer/director.

Filmography: Ryuichi Sakamoto | Opus (2023)

Photo by Aiko Masubuchi

 

 

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