Picture yourself as the mother or father of a curious seven-year-old who adores his relatives, baseball games, and time with companions. It matches the existence you have long desired. Then tragedy strikes in an instant: an unexpected mishap claims your child. Yet sorrow need not linger, since an artificial intelligence firm now offers to restore your boy as a mechanical replica that appears identical to any person.

This setting comes from celebrated filmmaker Hirokazu Kore-eda, who earned the Palme d'Or for his 2018 work Shoplifters. His newest science-fiction piece, Sheep in the Box, explores such ideas. The premise once seemed distant but now resonates as AI touches daily routines. Kore-eda recognized this shift and consulted a robotics specialist during script development to clarify details. The expert noted that overheating issues mean clones would likely arrive before humanoid machines, Kore-eda recalled.

Robots form only part of the picture. Themes of loss run through much of Kore-eda's earlier output. Though placed in a coming era, Sheep in the Box centers on a household navigating absence. Allowing ourselves to accept the premise lets us recognize our own experiences within the narrative.

The Verge met Hirokazu Kore-eda at Neon's headquarters shortly before the US opening of Sheep in the Box. Through an interpreter, Kore-eda discussed crafting and guiding the project, including an experiment with ChatGPT on the screenplay.

Robyn Kanner

The conversation has been trimmed and condensed.

Your body of work often examines loss. What insights about handling grief have emerged from these projects?

Grief appears in many forms. My debut feature Maborosi focused on that subject after I studied Elisabeth Kubler-Ross writings on the topic. Those texts supplied a structure, yet real mourning rarely follows a straight line. Each individual moves through it in a personal manner.

In Sheep in the Box, recollections turn into data. That notion struck me as somewhat distant. How did it register with you?

While shooting, I considered that the information placed into the humanoid version of Kakeru comes pre-chosen by the parents. It differs from lived memory. Once separated from the body, such input lacks the emotional weight that defines human experience.

AI generates constant discussion today. Why address it now?

Japan sees growing AI projects, including taxi ads promoting productivity gains. I focused on applications for mourning. Recent examples include a deceased singer revived via AI for a new track and a Korean case recreating a lost child for parental comfort. Similar services appear in China. As someone who has explored grief on screen, I wondered how AI might reshape that process, for better or worse, and how it affects a couple attempting to rebuild family life.

AI resource demands receive attention. The machines in the film avoid water and food. What prompted that choice?

The expert I consulted highlighted heat buildup during smooth motion and data handling as a major barrier. To proceed with the tale, I set that limit aside. Independence from resources underscores their self-sufficiency.

Neon

The near-future setting blurred lines between invention and possibility. How do you separate them?

The robotics specialist reviewed the outline and stated humanoid robots remain unlikely due to physical differences from human anatomy. Clones would come first if ethics were ignored, an idea that felt more unsettling. Robots stay machines, yet cloning already occurs with pets and raises deeper ethical questions about altering life itself.

Blue tones dominate the clothing. Was that planned?

Costume designer Sachiko Ito selected the palette after I suggested earth tones for the main characters. She also factored in a warmer future climate, leading to simpler garments with fewer closures.

How has AI entered your routine?

Translation tools assist with English messages. I tested ChatGPT by submitting the script for comments. It praised revisions and predicted festival success, first suggesting Un Certain Regard then competition once my name was added. The prediction proved accurate, yet any observer could offer similar input. The absence of personal context limits its value. Broader concerns include overemphasis on efficiency that affects creative choices, such as replacing location driving scenes with studio composites. Such shifts reduce imaginative elements and run counter to genuine invention.

Sheep in the Box reaches select theaters Friday, July 24.

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Robyn Kanner