"Black Box Diaries" with Shiori Ito

Top Docs: Award-Winning Documentary Filmmakers

The message from some of the most powerful forces in Japanese society was clear: “Don’t talk about it.” But, over the course of a yearslong journey depicted in her powerful new documentary “Black Box Diaries,” Japanese journalist Shiori Ito does all she can to expose the facts and tell her story of how she was raped in 2015 by a prominent journalist. After the Tokyo Metropolitan Police decided not to pursue the investigation, Shiori made her accusations public at a press conference and never looked back.

Joining Ken on the pod, Shiori describes the many cultural, political and legal obstacles that stood in her way as she refused to do what even her own family was advising, which was to remain silent. Relying on her skills as a journalist, Shiori interviews multiple witnesses and confronts the powers that be. She files a civil lawsuit. She writes a best-selling book. The result is the stirrings of a Japanese #MeToo movement, a quest for justice, and the reclaiming of her chosen profession. “Black Box Diaries” is the harrowing, disturbing, and, ultimately, inspiring story of what happens when one woman decides to talk — and to fight back.

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@shiori_ito.films and @blackboxdiariesdoc on Instagram

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“Black Box Diaries” is being released by MTV Documentary Films.

Hidden Gem:

“Intercepted”

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