YESILAY LIT A LIGHT IN MALAZGIRT.
Yesilay is one of the most influential anti-addiction NGO’s in Turkey.
_
Children are the world’s future. Unfortunately, they are also one of the most vulnerable groups in our world. Yeşilay is a Turkish non-profit organization which fights against alcohol, drug, gambling, tobacco and many other addictions with regards to human dignity. They had decided to support an amateur children football team in Malazgirt, a socially and financially unstable region in Turkey, to protect that region’s children against any kind of harmful habits. With their support, Malazgirt 1071 Football Club had managed to become the light of hope for the children of that region.
When we met with Yeşilay to promote the project, we approached this ‘job’ as an opportunity to do something beneficial to humanity. We decided to visualize this campaign by creating a documentary-like piece of work rather than a traditional commercial. So we went to Malazgirt and spent days with the children and club’s staff to get acquainted with each other. We interviewed and filmed their training and matches. We thought it would be better to listen to the children and staff since experiencing their journey through their own words and stories would serve our purpose better. At one point, Yeşilay organized a trip to İstanbul for the whole squad.
During this trip, the children especially had a dream-like experience. Visiting places, which they have just seen on television, was a magical moment for the kids. We had the opportunity to witness, film, narrate this journey and create another documentary-like content. Whole thing was a humbling experience for us, we hope to watch those kids in the top football clubs in future and have the honor to think we have contributed to their journey.