The Contestant

In 1998 a television programme in Japan shut a contestant in an empty flat. He was naked, had no possessions, and his only task was to send coupons to magazine sweepstakes. He would live off what he won and be released when the total value reached a set amount. It lasted fifteen months. Through that time he did not know he was being broadcast; he learned afterwards that the footage was being shown on television and that millions were watching him. Clair Titley directs. The documentary dates from 2023. At its centre is the comedian known by the name Nasubi; the programme aired on Nippon TV and was among the most watched in Japan at the time. Its most concrete detail of method is the footage itself: the recordings made in the flat are used directly in the film. The producer speaks in the documentary too and defends what he did; the narrative does not build him as a one dimensional villain. The matter it works at is consent; the participant signed a contract but did not know what he had agreed to, and that distinction is at the centre. The last section follows Nasubi's later life; he volunteered after the 2011 earthquake and climbed Everest. Who it is for: viewers who like documentary on television history and media ethics. Who it is not for: the subject is uncomfortable, the archive footage is hard to watch, and the narrative at times tries to build heroism.