'Rebirth' tops Japan Academy Awards

TOKYO -- "Rebirth," Izuru Narushima's meller about a woman who kidnaps the baby of her married lover and raises her as her daughter, scooped 10 trophies at the Japan Academy Awards ceremony on Friday, including best picture and director. The lead actress prize went to Mao Inoue for her perf as the grown daughter in search of her past while Hiromi Nagasaku was named supporting actress for her turn as the kidnapper-cum-mother. Released in April, "Rebirth" earned a solid $15 million at the B.O. It was based on Mitsuyo Kakuta's best-selling novel that in turn inspired a hit TV drama in which Inoue and Nagasaku both starred. The lead actor prize went posthumously to Yoshio Harada for his work in the dramady "Oshika-mura soudouki." The veteran thesp died at age 71 shortly after the pic's release in July. Single-named thesp Denden drew supporting actor honors for his role as a murderous fish store owner in the Sion Sono shocker "Cold Fish." The animation prize went to the Studio Ghibli smash "From up on Poppy Hill," while the foreign film award was given to "The King's Speech." Contact the Variety newsroom at news@variety.com