Hirokazu Kore-eda’s ‘Sheep in the Box’ Premieres in Competition at Cannes

The 17th feature of the Japanese filmmaker’s imagines the world in the near future, at a time when artificial intelligence has come to dominate virtually every aspect of our lives.

The filmmaker’s 17th feature, which Neon will distribute later this year in the U.S., imagines a world in the near future, at a time when artificial intelligence has come to dominate virtually every aspect of our lives.

Kore-eda was inspired by the “sheep in the box” sequence in Antoine de Saint-Exupéry’s acclaimed and popular tome, The Little Prince, where the lead character declares that the best painting of a lamb is the one that is hidden and unseen.

Set in a small Japanese town in the “not-too-distant future,” the tale revolves around modernist architect Otone (Haruka Ayase) and artisan woodworker Kensuke (Daigo Yamamoto), a married couple whose serene facade conceals their grief over losing their son in mysterious circumstances two years earlier.

The director’s fascination with surrogate families is manifest, albeit in different ways, in films such as Distance (2001) and Shoplifters (2018); and his interest in exploring the malleability of truth drives The Third Murder (2017) and Monster (2023).

Sheep in the Box: Hirokazu Kore-eda’s Sci Fi (Cannes Film Fest 2026)

Hirokazu Kore-eda’s ‘Sheep in the Box’ Premieres in Competition at Cannes

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