International Red Cross: Defenders

The film begins in a makeshift tent: a poster of Kalidou Koulibaly, horns honking, armed men rushing to get out. Outside, the player himself, wearing a red soccer uniform, plants himself in front of the camera, before blurting out: "Keep it clean! No fouls!" He immediately disappears. Who was he talking to? No time to wonder if it was a dream or reality. The young gunmen jumped into the back of a pick-up truck. "Think before you shoot!" These first two scenes set the tone. We quickly realize that the perspective is that of a young combatant, somewhere in Africa. Then comes the chaos: gunfire, explosions, smoke... The enemy must be eliminated, but civilians are running in every direction, right in front of them. Shoot anyway? An opponent's rifle jams, he puts it down and raises his arms in the air. Kalidou Koulibaly intervenes again. "Careful! Think before you shoot", he tells the young fighter firmly. Between the latter and the fighter who puts down his weapon, a young woman appears, panicked, caught in the line of fire. The rifle lowers, the message is clear: surrendering fighters and civilians must be spared. The title "Defenders" highlights the film's main awareness-raising message. Kalidou Koulibaly, himself a defender on the soccer pitch, concludes at the end: "In conflict, we must all defend the most vulnerable." He refers to international humanitarian law (IHL) without explicitly naming it. The film is aimed at a predominantly young, football-loving audience, particularly those who carry arms in Africa. To better reach them, the central idea is to convey the message of restraint in armed conflicts through expressions specific to soccer. Later in the film, Kalidou Koulibaly speaks to the young "hero", who understands the message better and better, and acts accordingly: "Champions are made when it really counts!", he tells him to stop a fellow soldier from attacking a young woman and her little brothers. And for having respected the rules, once the fight was over, he congratulated him as follows: "No foul, no red card!"