HAPPYEND
NEO SORA
Japan, USA / 2024 / 113 mins
Japanese with English Subtitles
IN CINEMAS FROM OCT 30
Best friends Yuta and Kou are about to graduate high school in a near-future Tokyo where the threat of a catastrophic earthquake pervades daily life. One night, they pull a prank on their principal, which leads to a surveillance system being installed in their school. Stuck between the oppressive security system and a darkening national political situation, the two respond in contrasting ways, leading them to confront differences they never had to face before. The first narrative feature from Neo Sora (director of Ryuichi Sakamoto | Opus), Happyend pulses with colour, music and the vivid textures of Tokyo. In this coming-of-age drama, the lives of tomorrow’s teens are captured with a luminous and heartfelt clarity.
SCREENINGS / EVENTS
AUSTRALIA
Alice Springs Cinemas, Alice Springs NT
Eclipse Cinema, Collingwood VIC
Five Star Cinemas, New Farm QLD
Golden Age Cinema & Bar, Surry Hills NSW
Pivotonian Cinema, South Geelong VIC
Star Court Theatre, Lismore NSW
AOTEAROA NEW ZEALAND
Alice Cinemas, Christchurch
Bridgeway Cinema, Auckland
The Gecko Theatre, Mouteka
Luxe Cinema, Tauranga
Penthouse Cinema and Cafe, Wellington
Rialto Cinemas, Auckland
State Cinemas, Nelson
Waiheke Cinema, Waiheke Island
The Wall and Basement Cinema, Rotorua
More sites TBA soon.
FESTIVALS / AWARDS
Venice International Film Festival 2024
Orizzonti Competition
Toronto International Film Festival 2024
Centrepiece
New York Film Festival 2024
Main Slate
Pingyao International Film Festival 2024
Robert Rossellini Award Winner
Hong Kong Asian Film Festival 2024
New Talent Award Winner
Asian Pacific Screen Awards 2024
Young Cinema Award
Sydney Film Festival 2025
Official Competition
New Zealand International Film Festival 2025
Fresh Competition
Melbourne International Film Festival 2025
Asia Pacific
Asian Pacific Screen Academy 2025
Asia Pacific Young Audience Award Winner
DETAILS
Aspect Ratio
1.85:1
Picture
Colour
Sound
5.1
Screening Format
DCP
Original Language Title
Happyend
REVIEWS
“Among the most unmissable films to hit U.S. theaters this year.” — Carlos Aguilar, Rogerebert.com
“Now, in 2025, a new voice emerges. Neo Sora’s debut feature, HAPPYEND, is not just a film. It is a cultural statement, a cinematic rave, and a love letter to youth resisting control. For long-time enthusiasts of Japanese cinema like myself, HAPPYEND is one of the most important releases in years, marking the arrival of a daring new filmmaker whose voice feels both urgent and timeless.” — Simon Martin, Japan Nakama
“Heartfelt, gently humorous and possessing a keen understanding of the passage from juvenile to adult thinking, it’s a thoughtful and solemnly beautiful feature debut.” — Jim Vorel, Paste
“Sora, his cinematographer, Bill Kirstein, and the composer Lia Ouyang Rusli capture the achy pleasures of youthful friendship and the tectonic frictions of the personal, the political and the geological. When a pen rolls on a desk, we're right to wonder, is it an anxious kid tapping his foot or the Big One?” — Lisa Kennedy, New York Times (Critic’s Pick)
“Neo Sora’s follow up to last year’s Ryuchi Sakamoto: Opus is a near-future coming-of-age story with a sweetly optimistic script and a prescient message. It’s also one of the best films showing at Venice.” — Chris Cotonou, A Rabbit’s Foot
“Sora strikes an expert tonal balance between the bittersweet, elegiac qualities of the end-of-school drama, with compassionate observation of the maturation process.” — David Rooney, The Hollywood Reporter
“A crisp and understated piece, with Bill Kirstein’s cinematography making the most of nocturnal cityscapes and of sterile empty spaces in the school classrooms and corridors…. A gentle, piano-based score by Lia Ouyang Rusli carries its own echoes of Sakamoto stateliness, not over-reverentially but with grace.” — Jonathan Romney, Screen Daily
“Sora’s clean-lined screenplay sketches a world that looks a lot like ours, only with the screws a little tightened.” — Jessia Kiang, Variety
FURTHER READING
Neo Sora: Unveiling Essential Truths Beyond Rules in “Happyend” — A Tale of Friendship and Defiance
Happyend, is a masterpiece born from the chaos of the 2020s, offering a beacon of hope for the future of Japanese cinema. — Kimi Idonuma, via NiEW.
