Takashi Sasano

Born in 1948, Takashi Sasano (笹野高史) has been acting in feature films and TV series since 1983. In 1985, he appeared in the Yoji Yamada film Otoko wa Tsurai yo – Shibamata yori Ai wo Komete (It’s tough being a man – from Shibamata with Love) and has since been a regular in the films of Yamada. He has appeared in over sixty films ranging from Masato Harada’s Saraba itoshiki hito yo/ The Heartbreak Yakuza in 1987 to Masahiko Tsugawa’s Pengin ga sora o tobu/ Pen- guins in the Sky and Jirochou sangokushi/ Samurai Gangsters, Tomoyuki Takimoto’s Ikigami/ The Ultimate Limit, and Takashi Miike’s Kamisama no pazuru/ God’s Puzzle in 2008. He won the Japan Academy Prize for Best Supporting Actor for his work in Bushi no Ichibun/ Love and Honor in 2006. In the West, he is best known for his role in the Academy Award-winning film Okuribito/ Departures.