Black Box Diaries
When Shiori Ito, at the time a young woman and aspiring journalist, accepted an invitation for a drink with famed reporter Noriyuki Yamaguchi, she was lured into a trap. After she was intoxicated, Ito was taken against her will to Yamaguchi's hotel room. Ito’s allegations of rape were dismissed by Japan’s justice system because of archaic laws that remain on the books. But Ito goes public with her allegations and sets up a court case in a demand for justice, setting up a riveting emotional rollercoaster-ride as she takes her fight to the heart of the patriarchy. With deftly compiled personal archival material (and a great soundtrack), Black Box Diaries sees Ito pushing herself to the extreme, tackling public criticism and threats, and navigating deep cultural prejudice against women. If she wins, it will be worth it all.
Shiori Ito is a journalist, writer, and documentary filmmaker. Her primary focus is gender-based human rights issues. In 2020, Time magazine listed her as one of the 100 most influential people in the world. Her debut feature-length documentary film, Black Box Diaries was officially selected for the 2024 Sundance Film Festival and will be released worldwide in late 2024. In 2017, she wrote the book Black Box, based upon her own experience of rape. The book reveals the sexism in Japan’s society and institutions. She won the Free Press Association of Japan Award for Best Journalism in 2018 and the One Young World Journalist of the Year 2022.
