Nagasaki, 1964: following the death of his yakuza father, 14-year-old Kikuo is taken under the wing of a famous Kabuki actor. Alongside Shunsuke, the actor’s only son, he decides to dedicate himself to this traditional form of theatre. For decades, the two young men grow and evolve together – from acting school to the grandest stages – amid scandals and glory, brotherhood and betrayals… One of them will become the greatest Japanese master of the art of Kabuki. This fascinating insight into the world of Kabuki is Japan’s candidate for the 2026 Foreign Language Oscar.

“KOKUHO is a monumental study of obsession, meticulously detailing the creation of a ‘national treasure’ by showing us every shard of the human being that was shattered to make it. (www.gazettely.com)

Sang-il Lee, born in 1974, is a Japanese director of Korean ascent. He studied at the Japan Institute of the Moving Image, a film school founded by Shōhei Imamura. In 2000, his graduation film, CHONG, received widespread acclaim. Since then, he has directed ten feature films, including 2013’s UNFORGIVEN, a remake of Clint Eastwood’s 1992 western of the same name, presented at the Venice International Film Festival.

Filmography (selection): 1998 CHONG, 2010 VILLAIN, 2013 UNFORGIVEN, 2016 RAGE, 2017 THE BLUE HEARTS, 2022 WANDERING, 2025 KOKUHO