Set in near-future Tokyo, Happyend follows a group of high school friends drifting toward graduation under the daily threat of earthquakes. When they pull a prank on campus, the school retaliates by launching a hyper-techno surveillance system. Stuck between the new security regime and a darkening national political situation, two of the friends respond in contrasting ways, forcing them to confront differences they’ve never had to face before. The debut narrative feature from Neo Sora, Happyend pulses with fluorescent tones, a genre-shifting soundtrack, and the nocturnal textures of Tokyo—a poised cinematic breakout offering a fresh and one-of-a-kind window into the lives of tomorrow’s teens.

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

New Zealand International Film Festival 2025

Melbourne International Film Festival 2025

DETAILS

Aspect Ratio
1.85:1

Picture
Colour

Sound
5.1

Screening Format
DCP

Original Language Title
Happyend

REVIEWS

“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.

EXTRAS