Kony 2012: Sequel to viral charity film receives its online premiere
Invisible Children’s Kony 2012 Part II repeats some of the same slick, inspiring shots as the original of a young global community mobilizing into action.
But noticeably missing is the voice of the organization’s co-founder, Jason Russell, who directed the first video. Russell was diagnosed with brief psychosis last month after witnesses saw him pacing naked on a sidewalk in a San Diego neighborhood, screaming incoherently and banging his fists on the pavement. His outburst happened shortly after Kony 2012 thrust the group into the global limelight.
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Hide AdThe sequel also lacks the kind of narrative that made the original unique. The first Kony 2012 presented the global issue through a child’s eyes, with a discussion between Russell, who directed the video, and his young son Gavin about stopping the bad guys.
The latest video is a traditional documentary that addresses criticisms fired at the San Diego-based nonprofit since its overnight launch to fame.
Among the complaints were that Kony 2012 was too American-centric, that the group spends too little money directly on the people it intends to help, and that it oversimplified the 26-year-old conflict involving Kony’s Lord’s Resistance Army.
The original video drew some 100 million hits on YouTube.