Conversation so far:
Who was the casting director for the film?
Takita.
Why was Takita hired as the casting director?
in his early 40s and having built a reputation as a realist.
Who were some of the actors and actresses that were cast in the film?
Veteran actor Tsutomu Yamazaki was selected for the role of Sasaki.
Who else?
pop singer Ryoko Hirosue.
Anyone else?
To provide realistic bodies while preventing the corpses from moving, after a lengthy casting process the crew chose extras who could lie as still as possible.

Question: How much were these actors and actresses paid?
Self-contained rewrite: How much were Tsutomu Yamazaki and Ryoko Hirosue paid for the film Departures?