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Japan Times
04-03-2025
- Entertainment
- Japan Times
Can Shiori Ito's documentary open Japan's black box?
By chronicling her harrowing search for justice in the documentary 'Black Box Diaries,' Shiori Ito exposes Japan's systemic sexual violence and disregard for victims. The film traces Ito's legal battle against Noriyuki Yamaguchi — the former Washington bureau chief of TBS who Ito accused of rape in 2015 — all the way to her victory in a civil case that was finalized in 2022. 'Black Box Diaries' has been released worldwide and its global resonance has earned it multiple international awards and, most notably, an Academy Award nomination for best documentary feature film. But the documentary cannot yet reach the public most directly implicated.
New York Times
01-03-2025
- Entertainment
- New York Times
Why a Japanese Oscar Contender Isn't Being Shown in Japan
A film by a Japanese woman about her search for justice from uncooperative authorities after she reported being raped is a contender at Sunday's Academy Awards. Yet, despite being the first full-length documentary made by a Japanese director ever nominated for an Oscar, the movie cannot be seen in her home country. In the film, 'Black Box Diaries,' the journalist Shiori Ito tells the story of what happened to her after she reported being raped at a hotel by a prominent television journalist and the ordeal she says she experienced with Japan's justice system. The film, which is up for best documentary feature, premiered in January 2024 at the Sundance Film Festival. It was released in U.S. theaters in October and can currently be seen or is slated to be shown in over 30 countries. However, those do not include Japan. The Japanese subsidiary of a major streaming service declined to distribute the film in early 2024, the filmmakers said, and theaters have so far displayed little interest in showing it. The prospects for the film's release grew even murkier in October when Ms. Ito's former lawyers and other previous supporters, including fellow journalists, spoke up against her, saying she had used footage without the consent of people in it. This is not the first time that Japan has balked at showing unflattering films that were well received in Hollywood. 'The Cove,' a documentary about a dolphin hunt in the town of Taiji, and 'Unbroken,' a feature film about cruel treatment of Allied prisoners during World War II, both opened at least a year after their U.S. premieres. 'The Cove,' which was made by an American director, won the Oscar for best documentary feature in 2010. Ms. Ito says that 'Black Box Diaries' is running into resistance, despite having a Japanese director, because it shines a light on a topic normally kept in the shadows: how the legal system and society, more broadly, look unfavorably on women who come forward to say they were sexually assaulted. 'This film is not just about sexual violence. It's about power, corruption and systemic problems,' Ms. Ito said. 'I am making many people uncomfortable, that's for sure.' Ms. Ito, 35, has been a polarizing figure since she came forward in 2017 to say that she was raped while unconscious by the journalist Noriyuki Yamaguchi after an evening of drinking over dinner. Mr. Yamaguchi, who was the biographer of former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, denied the charges, and a criminal case was dropped by prosecutors after two months. Ms. Ito won a civil suit against him for damages in a ruling that was upheld by Japan's Supreme Court. The case made her a symbol of Japan's still underdeveloped #MeToo movement, while critics have accused her of grandstanding to advance her career. 'There is a tendency in Japanese society to avoid talking about hot-button issues,' said Atsushi Funahashi, a film director. 'I believe this film should become a catalyst to ensure that no woman ever has to go through this kind of painful experience again.' The stress of all the attention appeared to take its toll on Ms. Ito. On Feb. 20, she canceled a Tokyo news conference at the last minute, citing medical reasons. A limited screening of an edited version of her film was also scrapped. A group of lawyers, including those who had represented her in the civil suit, held their own news conference the same day to reiterate their concerns with the film. They said 'Black Box Diaries' uses video and audio of a taxi driver, a police detective and one of the lawyers without those individuals' permission. They also faulted Ms. Ito for including footage of herself being dragged out of a taxi by Mr. Yamaguchi when they arrived at the hotel. The footage from a security camera was used without the hotel's permission, said the lawyers, who demanded that it and other scenes be deleted or greatly altered. 'I must now speak out against someone whom I fought alongside for so many years,' one of the lawyers, Yoko Nishihiro, said. 'How miserable is this.' In a statement released after canceling her news conference, Ms. Ito apologized for 'causing harm' by not obtaining consent and said she is making a modified version of the film 'to ensure that individuals cannot be identified.' At the same time, there are scenes that Ms. Ito and the film's producers say they are unwilling to cut. One of these is the security camera footage from the hotel, which Ms. Ito said was 'the only visual proof of the sexual assault.' Eric Nyari, a producer of the film, said they were trying to negotiate a version of the film that could address the criticisms regarding privacy while still exposing what happened. 'There are certain areas where we are meeting concerns,' Mr. Nyari said, 'but there are certain areas where we believe we're in the right and we are not going to change.'
Japan Times
27-02-2025
- Entertainment
- Japan Times
Oscar-nominated documentaries put Japan under the microscope
An Academy Award nomination is a cause for celebration for anyone, but even more so in the Japanese film industry, where such international honors can be few and far between. This year, Japan has multiple reasons to rejoice, as two Japanese documentary films, Shiori Ito's 'Black Box Diaries' and The nominations are particularly exciting for Tokyo-based Eric Nyari, who co-produced Ito's feature and produced Yamazaki's short film. Hailing from New York and son of the founder of Cineric, a leader in the field of film restoration and preservation, Nyari came to Japan when he was 21, and at age 28, produced his first film, the Atsushi Ogata comedy 'Cast Me If You Can,' in 2009. He has since accumulated 40 producer credits, including Neo Sora's 2024 sci-fi drama '
Japan Times
20-02-2025
- Entertainment
- Japan Times
Japan release of Shiori Ito's documentary in limbo
When freelance journalist Shiori Ito won her lawsuit against prominent reporter Noriyuki Yamaguchi in a rape case in 2019, it seemed like one of Japan's most high-profile #MeToo cases had come to an end. Yet five years later, debates surrounding Ito, now 35, have resurfaced, this time regarding her internationally acclaimed documentary 'Black Box Diaries.' The documentary, based on her memoir, is a first-person feature that captures her experience following the rape incident and how society responded to her revelation, including the reluctance by authorities to take action.
Yahoo
07-02-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Oscar-Nominated Doc Features Shine a Light on Dark Topics, International Stories and Global Politics
Based on the feature documentaries nominated for an Academy Award over the last two years, it's clear that if streaming services like Amazon, Apple and Netflix want to be real competitors in the race for The Little Gold Man, they need to start buying or commissioning bold, political last year, the 2025 crop of nominated feature docs all tackle urgent and timely international stories that resonate in today's geopolitical climate. This year's feature nominees are Shiori Ito's 'Black Box Diaries' (MTV Documentary Films); Basel Adra, Rachel Szor, Hamdan Ballal and Yuval Abraham's 'No Other Land' (no U.S. distribution); Brendan Bellomo and Slava Leontyev's 'Porcelain War' (Picturehouse service deal); Johan Grimonprez's 'Soundtrack to a Coup d'Etat' (Kino Lorber); and Julian Brave NoiseCat and Emily Kassie's 'Sugarcane' (Nat Geo).Notably, Bellomo is the only American filmmaker nominated this year. Last year, the doc branch did not nominate any American directors. Ito's 'Black Box Diaries,' which debuted at the 2024 Sundance Film Festival, chronicles the investigation of the director's arduous, five-year struggle to bring to justice renowned TV reporter Noriyuki Yamaguchi, who sexually assaulted her. Since the film's debut in Park City, Ito, who is the first Japanese filmmaker to be nominated for an Oscar for best doc feature, says that she has met many survivors of sexual violence who shared that watching her doc inspired them to tell their own assault stories.'What I really want to highlight for survivors is that the most important mission is to survive,' says Ito. 'If survival means staying silent, then that's completely OK. There's no need to share your story unless it feels right for you. What I hope people understand is that if you carry trauma, finding a way to express yourself on your own terms can be deeply empowering.' The Oscar nomination for 'Black Box Diaries' could, Ito says, 'inspire conversations in Japan about how legal systems can better support survivors of sexual violence.''I am very hopeful that this recognition will help push for change, both in the (Japan) penal code and in broader cultural attitudes. Legal reforms are a critical step, and I truly believe they will lead to a cultural shift that prioritizes justice and support.'This year's frontrunner, 'No Other Land,' depicts the Israeli government's efforts to force Palestinians from their homes in Masafer Yatta in the southern West Bank. The Palestinian-Israeli film has been steadily gaining accolades ever since it scored the best documentary prize at last year's Berlin Film timely piece, which shows the gradual demolition of houses and entire villages by the Israeli military's bulldozers, has won the top prizes from the New York Film Critics Circle, the Gotham Awards and the IDA. In January, the doc won the NBR Freedom of Expression kudo. Most recently, 'No Other Land' was nominated for a BAFTA and an Independent Spirit while it has been picked up for distribution in 24 countries — including the United Kingdom and France — 'No Other Land' has been unable to find a distributor in the U.S., which given major streamer's fear of purchasing polarizing political content, is not exactly surprising.'The film has distribution all over the world, and there's a really big demand for it in the United States, so you would expect a big distributor to jump on board,' director Yuval Abraham told Variety. 'We're obviously talking about the Israeli military occupation of the West Bank, and it's very ugly. The film is very, very critical of Israeli policies. As an Israeli, I think that's a really good thing because we need to be critical of these policies so they can change. But I think the conversation in the United States appears to be far less nuanced — there is much less space for this kind of criticism, even when it comes in the form of a film.'Bellomo and Leontyev's 'Porcelain War' also does not have mainstream U.S. distribution. The doc tells the story of porcelain artists whose lives are turned upside down by the terrors of the war in Ukraine. The film follows Leontyev and fellow artists Anya Stasenko and Andrey Stefanov, who all choose to help their countries fight off the Russian invasion. Despite daily shelling, Stasenko finds resistance and purpose in her art, Stefanov takes the dangerous journey to get his young family to safety abroad, and Leontyev becomes a weapons instructor for regular people who have become unlikely its 2024 Sundance debut, where it won the Grand Jury prize for a U.S. documentary, the film went on a successful film festival circuit run and won the DGA award for outstanding directorial achievement in documentary. The film also scored a PGA nomination. Yet, like 'No Other Land,' 'Porcelain War' did not find traditional U.S. distribution. In August, the film team decided to do a service deal with Picturehouse.'We have felt incredibly fortunate to have partnered with Picturehouse for U.S. theatrical distribution, but there is more work to be done,' says 'Porcelain War' producer Paula DuPré Pesmen. 'As we have traveled with the film-to-film festivals all over the world this past year, it has become clear that audiences are deeply connected with the humanity, beauty and hope of this story. Making the film available to audiences worldwide is crucial, not just for Ukraine but for democracy. Our dream is that the honor of this nomination will expand the opportunities for 'Porcelain War' to be shared with everyone.'Grimonprez's 'Soundtrack to a Coup d'Etat,' which premiered at Sundance in 2024, is an impressionistic essay film that looks back at the hopeful rise of Patrice Lumumba, who became the first prime minister of the newly independent Congo in 1960, only to be deposed a few months later and executed the following year. The director expertly juxtaposes the story of Lumumba's murder with a musical tour of jazzman Louis Armstrong and with the expansion of the United Nations after the independence of many African countries in the January, Grimonprez told Variety, 'At first, I wanted to explore the colonial legacy of my own country. I was already mesmerized by the story of Andrée Blouin, who was an independence leader, an advisor to [Ghana president] Kwame Nkrumah and chief of protocol for [first Congolese prime minister] Patrice Lumumba, but who was almost written out of history. And as a filmmaker, I like to explore those intimate stories within a wider, global picture.'The film garnered the Sundance World Cinema Documentary Special Jury Award for Cinematic Innovation and has since taken home an IDA award for best editing. Most recently, the doc was nominated for an Independent Spirit Award.'Sugarcane' first premiered at Sundance 2024, where it picked up the directing kudo. Nat Geo later acquired the film about the abuse and death of Indigenous children at a Canadian-based Indian Residential School. The doc explores how Indigenous communities were forced to suppress years of separation, assimilation and abuse committed against their children by a system designed to 'solve the Indian problem.'In January, the doc won the NBR for best documentary and has been nominated for the Independent Spirit's Truer Than Fiction award.''Sugarcane' has already helped rewrite history, screening in Canadian Parliament and the White House,' the directors said in a joint statement to Variety. 'We are hopeful this incredible recognition from the Academy will not only make sure the story is known, and justice is served. It is long past time for governments and churches to open all their records so that survivors, their families, and all people who call North America home can know the truth.' More from Variety Why 'Queer' and 'I Saw the TV Glow' Are the Kind of LGBTQ+ Movies That Deserve Awards Attention Are the Oscars Scared of Sex? Dylan O'Brien Used Director James Sweeney's 'Gay Scale' to Play Brothers in 'Twinless': He'd Say 'You Were Too Straight on That' Best of Variety Oscar Predictions: Best Supporting Actress — Will Zoe Saldaña be 'Emilia Perez's' Redemption or Is Ariana Grande Too 'Popular' to Lose? Oscar Predictions: Best Actress — Demi Moore Is Out Front, but Fernanda Torres Could be a Spoiler Oscar Predictions: Best Actor — Adrien Brody vs. Timothée Chalamet, but Who Wins?
