NHK Documentary Season 23

Season 23

Air date: 2021-01-04

Episodes: 27

Episodes

E1: Digital vs. Real: Digital Twin - The End of Privacy?

Every day, people willingly surrender their personal data in pursuit of entertainment or convenience. This information is stored in giant repositories, then used to track our movements, sell us products and determine our future. Technology now allows the creation of "digital twins," virtual copies of our real selves based on our search histories and online habits. But what are the human and social costs of these innovations? Will they bring us more freedom and opportunity? Or will they lead to increased loss of individual liberty? We explore the ongoing conflict between digital convenience and personal privacy.

Air date: 2021-01-04

E2: Dying Out of Sight: Hikikomori in an Aging Japan

It's estimated over a million Japanese live as "hikikomori," recluses totally withdrawn from society. Some hikikomori may even go for decades without leaving their house. While in the past the phenomenon was most commonly associated with young men, recent data has revealed a much wider demographic of people whose confidence in themselves, and in society, has been shattered. As the parents or relatives hikikomori so often depend on entirely become too old to care for them, many now face a dire situation, left alone and unable to cope.

Air date: 2021-01-18

E3: Women's Livelihoods in Crisis: Bearing the Brunt of the Pandemic

Ever since the COVID-19 pandemic first hit Japan, the far-reaching economic fallout has disproportionately impacted women's livelihoods. More than twice as many women have lost work, or seen their incomes slashed, compared to men. In an era where women are now often key breadwinners for their families, the repercussions have created a dire situation for households across the country. We explore what lies behind stark demographic discrepancies between men's and women's employment, and report first-hand on the bitter struggles of those whose voices all too often go unheard.

Air date: 2021-01-31

E4: COVID-19: AI Decodes the Research

How far will COVID-19 spread before it subsides? An artificial intelligence system developed by NHK analyzed more than 200,000 scholarly articles to answer some pressing questions: how many more people will get infected this winter, why does the number of deaths differ from country to country, when will the pandemic begin to slow down, and what is the key to stopping this deadly disease? Learn some of the most effective ways to fend off the virus and hasten our return to normal life.

Air date: 2021-02-08

E5: Miracle Body: Breaking Limits with Hyper-Adaptability

How far can a human go to adapt? Tatyana McFadden of the United States is a wheelchair athlete who was born paralyzed from the waist down. She is already a legendary figure in para track and field who has won major events at all distances. In order to understand the secrets of her almost superhuman dominance, we did a scientific analysis of her body. What gives her speed in her wheelchair is not just raw strength, but also her exceptional command of her arms. She has this power because of remarkable adaptations within her body. To explore this further, we went to Russia, where McFadden spent her early childhood, and discovered that the first years of her life were unimaginably harsh. Born without certain physical abilities, she adapted ... and a "miracle body" was born. At the difficult time with the coronavirus, we offer this story about the wondrous potential of the human body to overcome seemingly impossible odds.

Air date: 2021-02-14

E6: Tsuneta Daiki: Creation through Destruction

Musical polymath Tsuneta Daiki is the mastermind behind chart-topping Japanese rock group King Gnu, and now also heads a boundary-pushing artist collective called "millennium parade." In an exclusive first, we were given full access to witness his intense creative process up close for a whole 3 months, tracking the progress and development of a special track entitled "2992" that boldly juxtaposes sonic genres. As Tsuneta over and again applies his ruthless process of destruction and creation in pursuit of his musical vision, our cameras are there to capture every step of the way.

Air date: 2021-03-01

E7: 2030 At a Crossroads to the Future: Climate in Crisis - Realizing a Net Zero World

In the series "2030" we tackle the challenges facing humanity over the next decade. We start with the pivotal issue of climate change, exploring what it will take to rein in our current trajectory as we hurtle toward a point of no return. Today we're seeing historic storms, floods and wildfires of increasing frequency and intensity. Climate change has entered a new phase, calling into question the very long-term survival of the human race. Drawing on the latest in climate modeling, we confront the bleak future that could be awaiting us and set out humankind's stark choice of paths to 2030.

Air date: 2021-03-22

E8: Origins of the Pandemic: Part 1 The Beginning

In this two-part investigative report, NHK delves into scientific data and social media posts in search of clues to the origins of the new coronavirus. Part 1 looks at when and where the virus began spreading. Our team explores the possibility that human-to-human transmission started much earlier than believed.

Air date: 2021-04-12

E9: Origins of the Pandemic: Part 2 Uncontrolled Spread

In this two-part investigative report, NHK delves into scientific data and social media posts in search of clues to the origins of the new coronavirus. Part 2 looks into early transmission: how was the virus able to spread across the world so quickly? We examine the 3 weeks after authorities in Wuhan announced an outbreak in late December 2019.

Air date: 2021-04-17

E10: Myanmar Coup: Digital Resistance

On February 1, Myanmar's military seized power in a coup, bringing the country's decade-long process of democratization to an abrupt end. It is now using force to stamp out opposition and the civilian death toll is climbing by the day. But the country remains defiant and protesters are putting their lives on the line to rescue the fledgling democracy. Meanwhile, young people both in Myanmar and around the world are harnessing the power of the internet to fight back.

Air date: 2021-04-26

E11: 2030 At a Crossroads to the Future: Hunger Pandemic - The Catastrophic Cost of Excess

In the series "2030" we tackle the challenges facing humanity over the next decade. In this episode, we investigate the looming crisis threatening our planet's food and water supply. Despite falling for decades, the UN has warned that global hunger is now fast on the rise again. A key factor is the enormous volume of food wasted daily in wealthy countries. With the global population projected to push 10 billion by 2050, researchers warn deep disparities in access to food and water could trigger multiple global conflicts. We take stock of the tough choices needed to avert disaster.

Air date: 2021-05-03

E12: Voices of the Children: 10 Years After the Disaster

In 2011, the lives of thousands of children were disrupted by the Great East Japan Earthquake disaster. Many lost parents and other loved ones. A decade later, some of them cannot share their feelings, even with their families. A young man whose mother and brother died deals differently with their loss than his father does. A teenaged girl is trying hard to build a real family with her new mother. Ten years after that fateful day, this is a record of the voices of these children.

Air date: 2021-05-10

E13: Inasa: Whispers on the Wind

A 16-year record of the farming and fishing community of Arahama, located in Sendai City in Miyagi Prefecture. The documentary begins in 2005, years before the devastating 2011 tsunami. The southeasterly wind called the Inasa is the long-time companion of locals in their everyday endeavors, and is said to bring good catches and rich harvests. They reflect on what has been lost to the tsunami, what is unchanged, and what can be passed on to future generations. What do we cling to when faced with catastrophe? As a global pandemic continues, discover the quiet strength of the people who live and died in the small community of Arahama.

Air date: 2021-05-24

E14: Decommissioning Fukushima 2021: Ten Years on from the Nuclear Accident

A decade on from its triple core meltdown, we take stock of the mammoth task of decommissioning the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant, an undertaking fraught with both technical and social challenges. The Japanese government maintains the process will take up to 40 years, but the schedule has already been revised 5 times, with pivotal elements postponed. Meanwhile, as people return to their homes in surrounding areas, the issue of how to dispose of unprecedented volumes of radioactive waste has become a sore point of contention between residents and the government. We look back on the 10 years since the nuclear disaster and explore the choices that will shape Fukushima's future.

Air date: 2021-05-29

E15: Unknown Stories Revealed by Fixed-Point Cameras

Communities throughout northeastern Japan have worked to rebuild since the Great East Japan Earthquake in 2011. A group of video journalists tracked their progress with cameras that were operated in over 100 fixed points for years at a time, capturing every step on the road to recovery. Their efforts have created intimate stories about the challenges these communities face. And they've revealed a broad range of human emotions and personal dramas that might otherwise have remained unseen.

Air date: 2021-06-21

E16: 2030 At a Crossroads to the Future: Plastic Pollution - The Toxic Cost of Mass Consumption

In the series "2030" we tackle the challenges facing humanity over the next decade. In this episode, we investigate the emerging threats posed by plastic pollution to life on Earth. The hyper-convenience of our modern way of living produces staggering volumes of plastic waste daily. Scientists now know that this waste breaks down into ever tinier pieces, spreading right across the globe and posing direct health risks, including through bioamplification of toxic additives moving up the food chain. We explore the drastic changes it will take to deliver a sustainable future for our planet.

Air date: 2021-06-28

E17: 2030 At a Crossroads to the Future: Playing God - Editing the Building Blocks of Life

In the series "2030" we tackle the critical choices facing humanity over the next decade. In this episode, we explore the revolutionary gene-editing tech now giving humankind the freedom to redraw the blueprint of biological life itself. We investigate not only the tremendous potential the technology holds, whether in the fight to eliminate diseases or in transforming agriculture to adapt to unprecedented climate extremes, but also probe the inherent risks involved and the potential for widespread abuse, dangers that could take our future down a very dark, dystopian path.

Air date: 2021-07-26

E18: TOKYO REBORN: The Metropolitan Expressway - The City's Artery

About three quarters of Tokyo's Metropolitan Expressway, known as the Shutoko, is built in midair. When it was newly completed, the scale of this elevated road system shocked the world. But now, a half a century later, it is deteriorating. This program showcases a particularly difficult and gigantic repair project that was completed in one night on the Route No. 1 Haneda Line. It also focuses on Tokyo Tower, the symbol of the city, which is completely painted and repaired every 5 years. The men who paint the structure at a height of 300 meters use scaffolding just 6 centimeters wide and are buffeted by wind and rain in a deadly battle with nature. The efforts of these and other people working heroically to prevent the deterioration of Tokyo's infrastructure are highlighted.

Air date: 2021-08-09

E19: Choose Life: Helping Young People at Risk

In Japan, the number of young people dying by suicide remains high despite efforts to intervene. Families and friends often wonder what they could have done to help. Experts are analyzing data to understand what leads to such acts of desperation. They're using AI to spot internet search trends that correlate with spikes in suicides, and tracking the times of day when they are most likely to occur. Now, they hope to identify those at risk and get them the help they need -- before it's too late.

Air date: 2021-08-23

E20: TOKYO REBORN: Shibuya - Transforming a "Monster"

Nighttime in late May of 2020. With the lifting of Japan's national COVID-19 emergency declaration, an unprecedented construction project begins at the JR Shibuya Station in Tokyo. Without halting the station's operations, crews will relocate an entire train platform by 350 meters, and move 500 meters of track, all within 54 hours. It's a battle measured in minutes and seconds. Despite exhaustive preparations, unexpected hurdles emerge. Protecting workers against the novel coronavirus adds another layer of complexity. Go behind the scenes of the most difficult and challenging project of its kind in JR's history, and see Shibuya's transformation from a labyrinth to a model of disaster prevention.

Air date: 2021-09-06

E21: Vision Hackers: Updated Takes on Saving the World

Around the world, young activists are using social media to change the world. They're finding new ways to organize and build support, whether for educating disadvantaged kids in Japan, creating jobs in Brazil, organizing essential workers in the US, or reinventing healthcare in Bangladesh. They're attempting to address the contradictions in global capitalism that the COVID-19 pandemic brought to light. And their influence is spreading far beyond their local communities.

Air date: 2021-09-11

E22: Myanmar in Turmoil: The Inside Story on the Military Crackdown

A human rights group says Myanmar's military has killed over 1,000 people since carrying out a coup in February. We take a look at the financial links between its top officers and 2 major business conglomerates, and hear from former soldiers who tell us they were trained to view people who support democracy as the enemy.

Air date: 2021-09-20

E23: 2030 At a Crossroads to the Future: AI Warfare - The Dark Abyss of Autonomous Weapons

In the series "2030" we tackle the critical choices facing humanity over the next decade. In this episode, we probe the alarming revolution in warfare that AI-controlled weapons are ushering in. 2020 witnessed the first suspected use of autonomous killer drones in real-world conflict. AI-assisted "gray zone" tactics, everything from cyberattacks on infrastructure to social manipulation through targeted fake news, are already fast evolving in sophistication. As artificial intelligence threatens to take critical life or death decisions out of human hands, we examine what it will take to safeguard our future on this planet.

Air date: 2021-10-02

E24: Prayers for the Pandemic: 1,300 Years of Ritual at Todaiji

Every early spring since the 8th century, Buddhist monks at Nara Prefecture's Todaiji have practiced the Shuni-e ceremony. A series of esoteric rituals, including prayers to Kannon to protect humankind from disaster and disease, it also offers a window into Tang dynasty China. But in 2021, the COVID pandemic threatened to bring a halt to this uninterrupted tradition. Aided by an infectious disease specialist, the monks go to great lengths to hold this ancient practice for the 1,270th time.

Air date: 2021-11-01

E25: The Dementia Mentors: Lessons from my Senior Peers

A provincial hospital in western Japan offers an unconventional mentoring service for those newly diagnosed with dementia and their families - one where the mentors themselves have dementia too. We document these "senior peers" offering first-hand advice to patients and families living through the shock of diagnosis, even as they themselves struggle to come to terms with their own worsening symptoms. From overcoming stigma and misunderstanding to facing the fear of losing their own identity, this account provides a moving and revealing insight into the challenges faced by those affected by this ever more prevalent condition.

Air date: 2021-11-15

E26: The Fallen Fortress

Mount Omine in central Japan has long been considered the spiritual heartland of the ascetic tradition known as Shugendo. Japan-based American journalist David Caprara lives at the foot of the mountain. One day he comes across a rusty airplane engine in a local museum. It once powered a US heavy bomber B-29 Superfortress which was used in air bombings during World War II. Intrigued, Caprara begins a quest to track down the story behind the engine. With the help of experts in Japan and the US, he obtains key wartime documents that confirm the B-29 had crashed after a bombing raid on Osaka on June 1, 1945 and that 4 airmen survived only to become prisoners of war. He also meets elderly people who witnessed the events. Caprara eventually pieces together the fate of the American fliers and the stories of those whose lives crossed theirs on the revered mountain.

Air date: 2021-12-11

E27: The Pride of Yokozuna: Hakuho's Lone Battle

From a boyhood in Mongolia, Hakuho rose to Yokozuna, the highest rank in the competitive world of Japanese sumo. He held that position for a record-breaking 14 years. But he struggled with the thought that he would never earn the love of the Japanese people. With the help of his trainer and his devoted family, he overcame physical pain and public disapproval to make his mark on the sumo ring and take his place in history. We follow the remarkable career of a rikishi who came to define his era.

Air date: 2021-12-18