Molotov Cocktails & Football Combine in Santigold & Pepsi's 'Kicking Down Doors'

Santigold new release ‘Kicking Down Doors’ mixes Molotov cocktails and Soccer in a new World Cup video directed by Great Guns Andy Morahan for Pepsi’s visual album ‘Beats of the Beautiful Game’.

What are the odds a soccer ball could stop a riot? Yeah, good luck with that. Yet here we see unidentified protesters facing off against riot police, until a kid's soccer ball rolls amid the chaos. Suddenly the tension lifts and for a few moments enemies put aside their grievances to have a little kickabout. Unrealistic? You might be surprised.

The video joins the Beats of the Beautiful Game series, that pairs directors like Spike Lee, Idris Elba, and Diego Luna with music artists including Kelly Rowland, Janelle Monae, Rita Ora, Don Omar, Santigold, Timbaland, R3hab to create something inspired by soccer in some way.

This first ever global visual music album is to celebrate the international sights and sounds of football which aims to highlight the vibrancy and spirit of the game #FUTBOLNOW

Director Andy Morahan says the initial idea came from The Christmas Truce. "The English and German soldiers put down their guns and played some football in No Man’s Land," says Morahan. "I was thinking of a way to try and tell that story in a modern light. Obviously I didn’t have the budget for a war scene, but a riot was more reasonable as a severe stand-off between people. It’s showing football, and sport by extension, as this beacon for humanity.

Morahan filmed "Kicking Down Doors" in Kiev, Ukraine, in recent months, a place not unfamiliar with the kind of vibe he was going for. However Andy is very emphatic that this story is not supposed to be specific to any country or current situation. "Some people asked if I went there because there’s been rioting and stuff like that, but not at all," says Morahan. "I was in Prague and wanted to shoot it there but the budget wouldn’t fit, so we were only an hour flight from Kiev and I’d worked there before so knew some people there who could help me out. Really, it was just close by and it fit the budget."

The idea behind the short films or ‘filmtracks’ is to capture the indelible spirit of football and show how the power of the game is inextricably interwoven with music and film.

This visual album is a celebration of different artistic talents and intertwines two art forms that up until now existed mostly in service of one another.

Morahan’s filmtrack to Santigold’s ‘Kicking Down Doors’ visually captures the feeling of hope overcoming despair in a modern urban environment.  The narrative of the film was inspired by Morahan’s interpretation of the vocals on the track which brings the spirit of the song alive.

The film represents the power of football and the symbol it represents in modern life.  Through the eyes of a young boy this compelling film follows him being caught up in a war-torn riot-torn city in a conflict situation.  His football, his best friend, is ripped from his hands and kicked into no-mans land; the open space standing between the rioters and the riot police. The power and passion behind the game of football brings these two sides together and culminates in a positive and hopeful conclusion.

The film is Real, Confident and Dynamic; it embraces a “Live for Now” theme and celebrates that this is a mind set for way you live your life. 

The film is alive and in the moment.  Whilst the shots are edgy, the film is beautifully organic and has a softly cinematic tone lensed by British cinematographer David Proctor.

Credits

Director:  Andy Morahan

Production Company:  Great Guns

Artist: Santigold

Executive Producer:  Frank Cooper III

Produced by:  Jonathon Ker and Laura Gregory

Executive Producer: Randi Wilens

Beats of the Beautiful Game Film Producer:  Jodi Lederman

Executive Producer: Sheridan Thomas

Director of Photography:  David Procter

Co-producer : Annie Hanlon & Tim Francis

Editor:  James Demetriou

Location Services Company: Radioactive Films

Radioactive Executive Producers : Roman Indrachu & Darko Skulsky

Producer: Tanya Neistova

Post Production  - Absolute Post

Audio:  Culum Simpson @ Jungle