Black Box Diaries

Black Box Diaries
Theatrical release poster
Directed byShiori Itō
Produced by
CinematographyYuta Okamura
Edited byEma Ryan Yamazaki
Music byMark Degli Antoni
Production
companies
  • Cineric Creative
  • Hanashi Films
  • Star Sands
  • Spark Features
Distributed by
Release dates
  • January 20, 2024 (2024-01-20) (Sundance)
  • October 25, 2024 (2024-10-25) (United States)
  • October 25, 2024 (2024-10-25) (United Kingdom)
Running time
103 minutes
Countries
  • United States
  • United Kingdom
  • Japan
Languages
  • English
  • Japanese
Box office$27,788[1][2]

Black Box Diaries is a 2024 documentary film produced and directed by Shiori Itō, documenting her sexual assault investigation and case in Japan.[3] The film premiered at the 2024 Sundance Film Festival.[3][4][5] It was released in the United States and United Kingdom on October 25, 2024, by MTV Documentary Films and Dogwoof, respectively. It received critical acclaim and was named one of the top 5 documentary films of 2024 by the National Board of Review.[6]

Synopsis

The film is a documentary based on investigative journalism analysing a high-profile rape case in Japan, written by the victim, Shiori Itō. The perpetrator was Noriyuki Yamaguchi, head of the Tokyo Broadcasting System. He's established to be a powerful man with friends in high places, notably prime minister Shinzo Abe.[7]

Production

The film is based on the 2017 memoir written by Itō.[7]

It is directed by Itō and co-produced by her along with Hanna Aqvilin and Eric Nyari.

Release

The film had its world premiere at the 2024 Sundance Film Festival on January 20 as part of the World Cinema Documentary Competition.[8] It also screened at South by Southwest on March 10, 2024,[9][10] CPH:DOX on March 18, 2024,[11][12] Hot Docs Canadian International Documentary Festival on April 29, 2024,[13][14]

In May 2024, MTV Documentary Films and Dogwoof acquired US and UK distribution rights to the film, respectively.[15][16]

Black Box Diaries screened at the Melbourne International Film Festival in Melbourne, Australia, August 2024[17] and at the 2024 Adelaide Film Festival in October. [18]

The film competed in the category Documentary Competition at the 20th Zurich Film Festival in October 2024, where it won the Golden Eye for best Documentary and the Audience Award across all competing entries.[19]

Critical reception

On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, 98% of 56 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 8.3/10.[20] Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned the film a score of 82 out of 100, based on 18 critics, indicating "universal acclaim".[21]

Accolades

Award Date Category Recipient Result Ref.
Sundance Film Festival 28 January 2024 World Cinema Documentary Grand Jury Prize Black Box Diaries Nominated [22]
CPH:DOX 24 March 2024 Human:Rights Award Won [7]
Hong Kong International Film Festival 8 April 2024 Golden Firebird Award – Documentary Competition Nominated [23]
San Francisco International Film Festival 28 April 2024 Best Documentary Feature Nominated [24]
Special Jury Award Won
Seattle International Film Festival 27 May 2024 Best Documentary Runner-up [25]
Lena Sharpe Award for Persistance of Vision Won
Best Director Shiori Ito 3rd Runner-up
Cinéfest Sudbury International Film Festival 22 September 2024 Inspiring Voices and Perspectives Award Black Box Diaries Won [26]
Zurich Film Festival 13 October 2024 Best International Documentary Film Won [27]
Critics' Choice Documentary Awards 10 November 2024 Best True Crime Documentary Nominated [28]
National Board of Review 4 December 2024 Top 5 Documentaries Won[a] [29]
International Documentary Association Awards 5 December 2024 Best Feature Documentary Eric Nyari, Hanna Aqvilin, Shiori Ito Nominated [30]
Best Director Shiori Itō Nominated
Emerging Filmmaker Award Won
Best Editing Ema Ryan Yamazaki Nominated
Astra Film Awards 8 December 2024 Best Documentary Feature Black Box Diaries Nominated [31]
Cinema Eye Honors 9 January 2024 Outstanding Non-Fiction Feature Shiori Itō, Eric Nyari, Hanna Aqvilin, Ema Ryan Yamazaki, Yuta Okamura, Yuichiro Otsuka, Mark Degli Antoni and Andrew Tracy Pending [32]
Outstanding Debut Shiori Itō Pending
The Unforgettables Won
Alliance of Women Film Journalists TBA Best Documentary Film Black Box Diares Pending [33]

Notes

  1. ^ This award does not have a single winner, but recognizes multiple films.

References

  1. ^ "Black Box Diaries". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved November 15, 2024.
  2. ^ "Black Box Diaries". The Numbers. Retrieved November 15, 2024.
  3. ^ a b Lodge, Guy (January 26, 2024). "'Black Box Diaries' Review: Shiori Ito's Courageously Candid Documentary Account of Her Own #MeToo Battle". Variety. Retrieved January 27, 2024.
  4. ^ Stern, Marlow (January 25, 2024). "How Shiori Itō Took on Her Powerful Rapist and Changed Japan Forever". Rolling Stone. Retrieved January 27, 2024.
  5. ^ Briscuso, Lex (January 21, 2024). "'Black Box Diaries' Review: Shiori Ito's Look at Her Own Sexual Assault Is Marvelous and Impactful". TheWrap. Retrieved January 27, 2024.
  6. ^ "2024 Archives". National Board of Review. Retrieved December 4, 2024.
  7. ^ a b c "Black Box Diaries". MIFF 2024. 2024. Retrieved September 2, 2024.
  8. ^ D'Alessandro, Anthony; Patten, Dominic (December 6, 2023). "Sundance Unveils Packed 2024 Lineup That Includes A.I., Pedro Pascal, Kristen Stewart, Satan, Devo & Steven Yeun". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved October 26, 2024.
  9. ^ "Black Box Diaries". South by Southwest. Retrieved October 26, 2024.
  10. ^ "2024 Film & TV Lineup". South by Southwest. Retrieved October 26, 2024.
  11. ^ "Black Box Diaries". CPH:DOX. Retrieved October 26, 2024.
  12. ^ Barraclough, Leo (February 15, 2024). "Documentary Film Festival CPH:DOX Unveils Competition Lineup". Variety. Retrieved October 26, 2024.
  13. ^ "Black Box Diaries". Hot Docs Canadian International Film Festival. Retrieved October 26, 2024.
  14. ^ Barraclough, Leo (March 12, 2024). "'Full Frontal's' Amy Hoggart, Magician Shawn Farquhar Feature in Films World Premiering in Hot Docs' Special Presentations Section". Variety. Retrieved October 26, 2024.
  15. ^ Morfoot, Addie (May 9, 2024). "MTV Documentary Films Acquires U.S. Rights to Sundance #MeToo Doc 'Black Box Diaries' (EXCLUSIVE)". Variety. Retrieved May 9, 2024.
  16. ^ Tabbara, Mona (May 16, 2024). "Sundance documentary 'Black Box Diaries' locks in major sales (exclusive)". Screen International. Retrieved October 26, 2024.
  17. ^ Cai, Jenny; Katayama, Seena (September 3, 2024). "Black Box Diaries documents Shiori Ito's pursuit of justice and sexual violence law reform in Japan". ABC News. Retrieved September 2, 2024.
  18. ^ https://citymag.indaily.com.au/culture/aff-review-black-box-diaries/
  19. ^ "An overview of all current and previous prize winners". zff.com. Retrieved October 18, 2024.
  20. ^ "Black Box Diaries". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango Media. Retrieved December 5, 2024.
  21. ^ "Black Box Diaries". Metacritic. Fandom, Inc. Retrieved December 5, 2024.
  22. ^ The Complete List of 2024 Sundance Film Festival Award Winners|Sundance Film Festival
  23. ^ Rosser, Michael (March 8, 2024). "Berlin award-winner 'All Shall Be Well' to open 2024 Hong Kong film festival". Screen Daily. Archived from the original on September 7, 2024. Retrieved September 7, 2024.
  24. ^ Anderson, Erik (May 1, 2024). "'Sugarcane,' 'The Teacher' Earn Awards at 67th San Francisco International Film Festival as SFFILM Enters a State of Change". Awards Watch. Retrieved July 24, 2024.
  25. ^ Carson, Lexi (May 19, 2024). "Seattle International Film Festival Awards Top Honors to 'Sing Sing,' 'Gloria!'". Variety. Retrieved September 27, 2024.
  26. ^ "‘The Count of Monte-Cristo’ big winner at Cinéfest Sudbury". Sudbury.com, September 27, 2024.
  27. ^ Del Don, Giorgia (October 15, 2024). "On Becoming a Guinea Fowl y Black Box Diaries son las grandes triunfadoras del Festival de Zúrich". Cineuropa (in Spanish). Retrieved October 18, 2024.
  28. ^ Lewis, Hilary (October 14, 2024). "'Sugarcane' Leads Critics Choice Documentary Awards Nominations". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved October 14, 2024.
  29. ^ Lattanzio, Ryan (December 4, 2024). "'Wicked' and Jon M. Chu Win Big with the National Board of Review — See the Full List". IndieWire. Retrieved December 5, 2024.
  30. ^ Bergeson, Samantha (November 19, 2024). "IDA Documentary Awards Announces 2024 Nominees: 'Sugarcane,' 'No Other Land,' and More". IndieWire. Retrieved November 20, 2024.
  31. ^ Pond, Steve (November 25, 2024). "'Wicked' Leads Nominations for Astra Film Awards". TheWrap. Retrieved November 26, 2024.
  32. ^ Hipes, Patrick (October 24, 2024). "Cinema Eye Honors: 'Girls State', 'Ren Faire' Lead Broadcast Nominees; Audience Choice Award Longlist Revealed". Deadline. Retrieved November 15, 2024.
  33. ^ "The 2024 EDA Award Nominees". Alliance of Women Film Journalists. December 13, 2024. Retrieved December 13, 2024.