Silent Cleaning, the 3D horror game we created for Kao Corporation, won two ACC Golds at the 2026 66th ACC TOKYO CREATIVITY AWARDS, in Branded Communication Category B (Social Influence) and in Media Creative. The game also took ACC Bronze in Marketing Effectiveness and was named an ACC Finalist in Design, earning recognition in four categories in total.

■ Awards

• ACC Gold　Branded Communication Category B (Social Influence)

• ACC Gold　Media Creative

• ACC Bronze　Marketing Effectiveness

• ACC Finalist　Design

https://www.acc-awards.com/festival/2026fes_result/

About Silent Cleaning

Silent Cleaning is a 3D exploration horror action and cleaning simulation game, and the first game ever released by Kao's Home Care Division. Armed with real Kao cleaning products like Magiclean and Quickle, players clean up a villa while quietly evading the creature that haunts it.

Kao wanted to reach younger audiences who rarely see TV commercials, and to get people talking about cleaning, a topic that seldom takes off on social media. We found the answer in game streaming and its passionate communities. Instead of a typical ad, we made a real horror game. We built it in Unity with 3DCG, just as a full-scale horror title would be built, and used Foley recording to capture how each product feels and sounds, down to the hiss of the spray. Players get a true-to-life product experience while they play.

On launch day in August 2025, the game hit No. 1 on both X trends and LINE NEWS and topped Steam's recommended free games page. A collaboration with the popular streamer Gatchman set off a wave of playthroughs, including streams from creators with millions of subscribers. Sales of some featured products doubled, and more people, especially younger audiences, now think of Kao first when it comes to cleaning.

A Nintendo Switch version followed in July 2026. It adds a new Less-Scary Mode so kids and players who shy away from horror can join in, and lets players tilt the controller for an even more realistic cleaning experience.

• Steam　https://store.steampowered.com/app/3833930

• Nintendo Switch　https://store-jp.nintendo.com/item/software/D70010000125311

• Official website　https://www.kao.co.jp/osouji/shizukana-osouji/

• Collaboration video with Gatchman　https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w_PLJJcm4GQ

■ Selected Awards

• Cannes Lions 2026　Bronze Lion, Entertainment Lions for Gaming

• YouTube Works Awards Japan 2026　Grand Prix

• Gamification Award 2025 (SEGA XD)　Challenge Award

About ACC TOKYO CREATIVITY AWARDS

The ACC TOKYO CREATIVITY AWARDS are organized by the All Japan Confederation of Creativity (ACC). The awards trace back to the ACC CM FESTIVAL, launched in 1961 to raise the quality of TV and radio commercials, and were relaunched in 2017 to recognize creativity in every field. This year's awards honor outstanding work across nine categories to help advance creativity in Japan.

https://www.acc-awards.com/

■ Credits (Excerpt)

Client　Kao Corporation
Creative Studio　Whatever Co.
Creative Director　SO
Producer / Strategic Director　Kei Kaneko
Producer / Planner / PR Planner　Yoriko Iida
Planner / Video Director　Rintaro Shimohama
Programmer　Takashi Okada, Kazuya Nagamachi, Makoto Matsutake, Saqoosha, Tatsuya Kida
3D CG Artist　Comomo Kanayama
PR　Material Inc.

Full credits are available on the Works page.
https://whatever.co/en/work/silent-cleaning/

■ Media Contact

Whatever PR
Email　press@whatever.co

Masashi Kawamura will join "An All-Out Talk on the Anime We're Betting Our Lives On," a talk session at Toranomon Advertising Festival 2026. Four people from the advertising world who are making original anime will take on one question: "Why animation, and why now?" Kawamura will talk about bringing the stop-motion samurai film HIDARI to feature length.

• Speakers: Kazuaki Kuribayashi, Kohei Kadowaki, Haruka Ichikawa, and Masashi Kawamura (Kadowaki will appear via pre-recorded video)

• Date: October 16 (Fri), 16:30–17:30

• Venue: TOKYO NODE, THEATER STAGE

https://toradfes.com/

Lucinda Lin and Pearson Tsim of Whatever Taipei spoke at TIDAF, the Taipei International Digital Advertising Festival, in August 2026. A new note based on their talk explores the skills creators need to develop in the age of AI.

https://note.com/whatever_co/n/n548968dd2d16

Whatever is featured in "The Optimal Approach for Art Directors and Designers," a new book from MdN that explores the background behind creative ideas and the logic of expression through the inputs and outputs of 183 leading creators.

https://books.mdn.co.jp/books/3226303017/

everies, an AR app that lets you chat with all sorts of things around you, was selected as App of the Day on the App Store's Today tab.

https://apps.apple.com/jp/story/id6796573449

Kenjiro Sese was featured in Creative Minds, Campaign Asia's weekly Q&A column in which APAC creatives answer 11 questions about their work and themselves.

https://www.campaignasia.com/article/creative-minds-kenjiro-sese-whatever-the-worst-jobs-can-sometimes-be-the-best-ones/4szh4k19fctf50cjx4av64qc55

Masashi Kawamura will speak at Toranomon Advertising Festival 2026. In a session titled "How to Make Something No One Has Ever Seen," he will share the skills and mindset needed to create an unprecedented project, drawing on his experience making the stop-motion samurai film HIDARI.

• Date: October 11 (Sun), 13:30–14:30

• Venue: TOKYO NODE, HALL STAGE

https://toradfes.com/

MoAR (Museum of AR) was featured in "The World of Digital Art," a special feature in the August issue of Nichijiren, the official journal of the federation of architectural office associations in Japan. The article introduces MoAR as an experience that uses architecture as a canvas for viewing digital art in AR.

everies, an AR app that lets you have conversations with the objects around you, was featured in "CREATIVE NAVI DIGITAL," a regular column in the October issue of Brain magazine.

https://www.sendenkaigi.com/creative/books/brain_202610/

The official documentary podcast for the stop-motion samurai film HIDARI, "Frame by Frame The Making of a Timeless Film," is now streaming. Hosting the show are first-time film director Masashi Kawamura and amateur rakugo storyteller Murontei Pirika.

HIDARI is a stop-motion samurai action film brought to life with hand-carved wooden puppets, produced together with dwarf studios and TECARAT. What began as a crowdfunding campaign has since grown into a pilot film, screenings at festivals in Japan and overseas, appearances at the Cannes Film Festival and the Annecy International Animation Film Festival, and the casting of Keanu Reeves in the lead voice role. Every step of the way, the project has been carried forward by the many people supporting it.

"Frame by Frame" follows all of that, from raising the funds to the work on set, with guests joining along the way to talk through everything it takes to bring a film to the world.

New episodes are planned on a regular basis, and we would love for you to follow the show.

◇ Show Information

• Title: Frame by Frame The Making of a Timeless Film

• Hosts: Masashi Kawamura (HIDARI original story, screenplay, director), Murontei Pirika (amateur rakugo storyteller)

Where to listen:
YouTube (video podcast): https://www.youtube.com/@teamhidari
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/033XIx7KpIGF7BufPe0Y6R
Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/jp/podcast/id6795795425
Amazon Music: https://music.amazon.co.jp/podcasts/75bca6e4-6241-436c-9a5a-291346afc0fa

◇ About the Stop-Motion Samurai Film HIDARI

• Genre: Action, Drama

• Technique: Stop-motion animation

• Original Story, Screenplay, Director: Masashi Kawamura (Whatever)

• Co-Director, Character Design: Iku Ogawa (dwarf studios)

• Character Design, Wood Carving, Art Direction: Takeshi Yashiro (Taiyo Kikaku / TECARAT)

• Producers: Noriko Matsumoto (nori / dwarf studios), Yusuke Tominaga (Whatever), Masami Ouchi (Taiyo Kikaku), and others

• Production Companies: dwarf studios / Whatever Co. / TECARAT

▷ Official site: https://hidari-movie.com/
▷ X: https://x.com/hidari_movie
▷ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/hidari_movie/
▷ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@teamhidari