Japan’s Oscar Submission is ‘Cloud’ By Kurosawa Kiyoshi
Japan has selected Kurosawa Kiyoshi's film Cloud as its official submission for the Best International Feature Film category at the 97th Oscars. The film is set to premiere out of competition at the Venice Film Festival this week.
Cloud stars Masaki Suda and is a thriller that centers on a young man named Yoshii, who becomes entangled in a series of mysterious events after reselling goods online, leading to a blurred line between the online and offline worlds. The film is produced by Nikkatsu Corporation and Tokyo Theatres Company, with Nikkatsu handling global sales. So far, the film has been acquired by distributors in France, Spain, Italy, and Taiwan.
Kurosawa Kiyoshi is an acclaimed director with a history of winning prestigious awards. He won the Silver Lion for Best Director at the Venice Film Festival in 2020 for Wife of a Spy, and has also been recognized at the Cannes Film Festival with awards for Tokyo Sonata and Journey to the Shore.
Japan has had a strong presence at the Oscars in recent years, with notable successes such as Wim Wenders’ Perfect Days receiving a nomination last year, Ryusuke Hamaguchi’s Drive My Car winning the International Feature prize in 2022, and Hirokazu Koreeda’s Shoplifters being nominated in 2019.
