TOKYO (AP) 鈥� In acclaimed Japanese director Hirokazu Kore-eda’s latest film, a grieving couple turns to technology to recreate what they have lost.
鈥淪heep in the Box,鈥� opening in U.S. theaters Friday, centers on a married couple whose son has died. To cope with their grief, they commission a humanoid made in his exact likeness.
The title refers to 鈥淭he Little Prince,鈥� Antoine de Saint-Exup茅ry鈥檚 children鈥檚 book, in which a sheep is imagined as being hidden inside a box. For Kore-eda, the reference suggests that some of the most valuable things in life may be intangible, sustained by connections that cannot be seen.
The film, a family drama set in the not-too-distant future, premiered at the this year.
鈥淚t explores how a couple tries to rework their relationship with their child, and so it鈥檚 not that different from the stories I鈥檝e explored in my past works,鈥� Kore-eda told The Associated Press.
Born in Tokyo in 1962, Kore-eda started directing documentaries after graduating from Waseda University. He generally writes, directs and edits his films, an enormous undertaking in filmmaking, but it gives him near-total control.
His 2013 feature 鈥淟ike Father, Like Son,鈥� a heartbreaking exploration of fatherhood centering on babies who get switched at birth, won the Jury Prize at .
His 2018 and was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film, was about a that survives partly by shoplifting.
In 2019, he directed In the 2022 film 鈥淏roker,鈥� he directed Korean actors, including Song Kang-ho, who won Best Actor at Cannes.
Despite the demands of his productions, Kore-eda is known for trying to ensure that everyone enjoys working on his sets. He has also been a longtime and vocal
That approach stands out in an industry known for punishing hours and low pay, particularly in Japan. Anyone found harassing another person while working on one of Kore-eda鈥檚 films is immediately removed from the production.
Adding to the challenge of ensuring benevolent filmmaking is that his works often have children as leading characters.
In his 2004 鈥淣obody Knows,鈥� children live without adult supervision, as they scrounge for food and live without running water or electricity.
That film propelled to stardom. Yagira, still active as an actor today, won Best Actor at the Cannes Film Festival, at 14.
鈥淪heep in the Box鈥� also features a striking performance by child actor Rimu Kuwaki, who took on the difficult role of playing a robot in his feature-film debut.
Kore-eda denied he saw children as a necessary element in his filmmaking. He merely likes the style of taking the view of a child to explore the adult world.
鈥淚t鈥檚 a heavy responsibility. We may be the first adults besides parents and teachers these children may come in contact with,鈥� he said.
鈥淲e want them to go home thinking all the adults were hard-working and having fun.鈥�
Kore-eda is surprisingly disarming for a filmmaker whose works address such serious themes. He laughs easily.
When this reporter said she wanted to ask the same question she asked Japanese director Akira Kurosawa many years ago 鈥� 鈥淲hat is filmmaking for you?鈥� 鈥� he didn鈥檛 skip a beat asking what Kurosawa鈥檚 answer was.
鈥淚f you take movies away from me, I am left with nothing,鈥� was Kurosawa鈥檚 answer.
Kore-eda jokingly pretended to give the same answer before offering his own.
鈥淢ovies are the only hobby I鈥檝e ever had. That became my job. Thinking about that hobby 24 hours a day became my life and my job,鈥� he said.
鈥淚 am so blessed.鈥�
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Yuri Kageyama is on Threads:
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