„Black Box Diaries“ finally on screens in Japan

Japanese journalist Shiori Ito has been trying to process her traumatic experience of sexual assault in 2015 in various ways over the years – from her courageous decision to go public in a highly patriarchal country – with all the terrible consequences – to making this heart-wrenching documentary. It’s a very important film, but one you might want prepare for and ask yourself honestly whether you are capable of watching it. 

In the film, which often uses self-recorded audio and video, cleverly intercut with time-lapse scenes of Tokyo city life, Ito tries to uncover the truth about that night when she – at the time 25 years old – suddenly found herself undressed in a Tokyo hotel room after having dinner with a much older journalist. (Now, years later, the horrific Pelicot case in France comes to mind…)

But Ito also reflects on the moral conflict she has been facing – asking others for help while secretly recording conversations as evidence, while also worrying about the consequences for those involved. That inner struggle comes across clearly.

The film has won numerous international awards and received an Oscar nomination. Her story became a key moment for the #MeToo movement in Japan in 2017, alongside the Flower Demo protests, which I wrote about at the time. 

The man she accused had connections to powerful political circles including then-prime minister Shinzo Abe – and got away with what he did to her. However, he did lose against Ito in a civil court case. In 2019, a Tokyo court ruled that what happened was non-consensual and ordered him to pay ¥3.3 million (about €25,000) in damages.

Ito was present at the screening at the small downtown cinema Stranger near Kikukawa station on Friday. Several people were in tears during the Q&A. Later in the lobby, there was a long line of people waiting to speak with her – and she responded to everyone with remarkable openness and kindness. Hard to believe the assault happened more than ten years ago, and it is heart-breaking to think what she has had to endure since…