 At the 32nd Japan Academy Prize ceremony held in February 2009 , Departures dominated the competition . It received a total of thirteen nominations , winning ten , including Picture of the Year , Screenplay of the Year ( Koyama ) , Director of the Year ( Takita ) , and Outstanding Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role ( Motoki ) . In the Outstanding Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role category , Hirosue lost to Tae Kimura of All Around Us , while in the Outstanding Achievement in Art Direction category Departures 's Tomio Ogawa lost to Paco and the Magical Book 's <unk> Kuwashima . Hisaishi , nominated for two Outstanding Achievement in Music awards , won for his scoring of Studio Ghibli 's animated film Ponyo . In response to the wins , Motoki said " It feels as if everything miraculously came together in balance this time with Okuribito " . 
