ASIENCE: Kami wa Onna no Inochi

A 60-second animated film was produced by Production I.G for Kao Corporation's Asience shampoo campaign. Kazuto Nakazawa directed and designed the characters, known for his work on the animation in Kill Bill: Vol. 1. Shuichi Hirata provided art direction, recognized for his work on Innocence and xxxHOLiC - A Midsummer Night's Dream. The animation style draws from 18th-century Japanese paintings, with character outlines featuring Nakazawa's expressive brushwork. The animation was drawn entirely in 2D, with in-between frames traced by hand on paper. The narrative uses a woman's hair as a metaphor for female life, presented through a tragic love story in the style of a samurai drama.