Courtesy of Neon

On Thursday, Neon unveiled the first clip for “All of a Sudden“, the Cannes Award-winning drama directed by the celebrated Japanese filmmaker Ryusuke Hamaguchi. The trailer provided American viewers their first glance at the lead actors, Virginie Efira and Tao Okamoto, who had taken the Best Actress award at the 2026 festival, positioning them as strong Oscar competitors.

Hamaguchi himself is an Oscar nominee, having been previously recognized for Best Director and Best Screenplay for his 2021 feature, “Drive My Car.” “All of a Sudden“, it is his first film made outside Japan, and it has garnered considerable critical and audience attention this year at Cannes. Japan is also submitting an entry for Best International Feature

Here’s the official logline : “Set in France and Japan, “All of a Sudden“ follows Marie-Lou (Efira), the director of a care facility for the elderly, who is determined to introduce an innovative philosophy of care rooted in listening and respect for residents’ dignity, despite resistance from members of her staff. Her path is profoundly reshaped by an encounter with Mari (Okamoto), a Japanese theater director battling cancer. As the two women form a deep friendship, they join forces in a shared struggle to make the impossible possible.”

In addition to Efira and Okamoto, the ensemble includes Kyōzō Nagatsuka, Kodai Kurosaki, Jean-Charles Clichet, and Marie Bunel. Behind the camera, Hamaguchi co-wrote the screenplay with Léa Le Dimna, based on the book When Life Suddenly Takes a Turn: Twenty Letters Between a Philosopher with Terminal Cancer and a Medical Anthropologist, by Makiko Miyano and Maho Isono. The producing team includes David Gauquié, Julien Deris, Jean-Luc Ormières, and Renan Artukmaç for France’s Cinefrance Studios; Hiroko Matsuda, Kosuke Oshida and Yuji Sadai for Japan’s Office Shirous and Bitters End; Bettina Brokemper for Germany’s Heimatfilm; and Joseph Rouschop for Belgium’s Tarantula.

“Drive My Car” achieved historical significance by being the inaugural Japanese-language film to be considered for the Best Picture award, and Hiroshi Hamaguchi stands as the third Japanese director to be nominated for Best Director. Given the Academy’s enlarged international voting sector, he might return to contention this year. Efira and Okamoto are also considered serious contenders for Best Actress and Best Supporting Actress.

Neon will release the film in theaters on Wednesday, November 25.