Join us for a free screening of the film "Black Box Diaries" followed by an in person Q&A with the filmmaker Shiori Itô, The Q&A will be moderated by Belinda Qian He (EALC/Cinema Studies faculty) and Yuhan Zhang (EALC PhD student). This is our first AsiaLENS film of the school year, we hope to see you there.
About the Film:
Black Box Diaries traces Itō’s courageous investigation of her own sexual assault, an improbable attempt to prosecute a high-profile offender that became a landmark case in Japan. Structured with the urgency of a thriller, the film weaves together audio recordings, vérité observation, first-person video clips, and an assembled case file—an “archive of her own”—to reveal the black boxes and blind spots in Japan’s judicial and social systems. Her practice bridges investigative reporting with the craft of cinema—mobilizing archival research, counter-forensic methods, and sustained fieldwork to turn personal evidence-gathering into pressingly needed public testimony. Premiering at the 2024 Sundance Film Festival and now released worldwide, the film has been nominated for an Academy Award and a BAFTA, received a Peabody Award, and garnered more than twenty international prizes, with screenings in over fifty countries.
The film run time is 102 minutes.
About the Filmmaker:
Shiori Itō is an Oscar and BAFTA nominated documentary filmmaker, journalist, writer, and co-founder of Hanashi Films, focusing on gender-based human rights issues. Named one of TIME magazine’s 100 Most Influential People in 2020, her voice continues to resonate globally through film, writing, and public speaking. For more detailed information, see Shiori Itō's Official Website.
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Free speech and academic freedom are foundational to our university’s missions of discovery and exploration. Questioning ideas, posing alternative opinions and presenting different perspectives is how we create knowledge and help everyone to have more meaningful engagement with the world around them. Hosting an event does not imply or signify the university’s endorsement, sponsorship, approval or disapproval of the views expressed in the event.