Cinefrance Unveils First Still of ‘Drive My Car’ Director Ryusuke Hamaguchi’s French Movie ‘All of a Sudden,’ Scores Early Deals (EXCLUSIVE)

Cinefrance has unveiled a first still of Ryusuke Hamaguchi‘s French movie “All of a Sudden,” his follow up to Oscar-winning “Drive My Car.”

“All of a Sudden” stars Virginie Efira (“Benedatta”) as Marie-Lou Fontaine, a director of a nursing home in the Paris suburbs, who defies convention by adopting the “Humanitude” method despite her team’s resistance. Her encounter with Mari Morisaki (Tao Okamoto, “The Wolverine”), a terminally ill Japanese playwright, transforms her life. Together, they turn the facility into a symbol of resistance and humanity against the system’s limits. Efira learned Japanese for the part.

In a previous interview with Variety, Hamaguchi said “Humanitude” stands for a “French method that was imported in Japan (…) and puts the human dimension at the heart of the treatment care, for the integrity of each human being.”

The film is loosely inspired by a collection of real-life exchanged letters published in the book “You and I – The Illness Suddenly Get Worse,” by Makiko Miyano and Maho Isono. It filmed on location in Paris and wrapped shooting in the fall. Cinefrance will officially launch sales at the European Film Market in Berlin, alongside Bitters End which reps Asia, and has already closed some deals with Plaion for Germany and Austria; and September Film for Benelux.

Cinefrance Studios is producing “All of a Sudden” with Office Shirous & Bitters End in Japan, Heimatfilm in Germany and Tarantula in Belgium. Diaphana will distribute in France and Bitters End in Japan.

“Between Paris and Kyoto, ‘All of a Sudden’ explores a deeply human, cross-cultural story of care, generosity, and love, portrayed with the poetic perspective that made ‘Drive My Car’ resonate worldwide,” Renan Artukmaç, producer and head of international sales at Cinefrance.

Michel Saint Jean at Diaphana praised Hamaguchi as “one of the greatest contemporary filmmakers.” “Each of his films is unique and adds an important new layer to the body of his work.” It marks the fourth collaboration between Diaphana and Hamaguchi, following “Drive My Car,” “Wheel of Fortune and Fantasy” and “Evil Does Not Exist.”

Moritz Peters at Plaion Pictures, meanwhile, said “All of a Sudden” offers a precise and compelling look at human relationships that feels very much of the moment.” He addded that “Hamaguchi’s empathetic approach gives the film clear potential to connect with audiences of all generations.”

Hamaguchi broke through the international scene in a major way in 2022, after garnering four Oscar nominations for “Drive My Car,” including best director and adapted screenplay, as well as Japan’s first ever for best picture, and won for best international feature. Since then, he directed “Evil Does Not Exist” which premiered at Venice and won the Silver Lion and the Fipresci prize, and the experimental silent piece “Gift.”