Several rows of men, identically dressed, lie on the ground in a neat line, holding hands. What looks like white goop drops on one man’s face, and with that comes a ghastly realisation. “It’s poop!” the men shriek in Japanese, “Bird poop!” And that is just the beginning of a nightmare they will have to face for many months, encapsulated into a minute and a half.

Sticking Together, No Matter What (video above) is a short advertisment created by ADK Asatsu-DK, a Tokyo-based agency.

You are left wondering why these men are being forced to endure all sorts of life-threatening conditions: fire, storm, sleet, an earthquake. “When is this all going to end?” one of them wonders. Of course, they ‘stick together’ through it all.

This ad for Tsuruya Roofing Tiles went on to win the Cannes Silver Lion 2017 in the Film TV/Cinema Film category for Household Goods, Home Appliances & Furnishings category. And it shows why creative work in Japan is