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The 30-minute documentary hopes to raise awareness about the central African militia leader who is known for mutilating bystanders, as well as abducting children to fight as soldiers or become sex slaves.
"Celebrities, athletes and billionaires have a loud voice and what they talk about spreads instantly," filmmaker Jason Russell said in the film, launched by Invisible Children on March 5. At the 23-minute mark, the documentary asks its audience to contact 20 "culturemakers" and 12 "policymakers," so they may use their influence to enact change.
The 20 sought-after celebrities are Ben Affleck, Justin Bieber, Bono, Warren Buffett, Stephen Colbert, George Clooney, Ellen DeGeneres, Jay-Z, Angelina Jolie, Lady Gaga, Bill Gates, Rush Limbaugh, Rihanna, Bill O’Reilly, Ryan Seacrest, Taylor Swift, Tim Tebow, Rick Warren, Oprah Winfrey, and Mark Zuckerberg. Among the 12 "policymakers" are former Presidents George W. Bush and Bill Clinton.
On the Kony 2012 website, visitors may click on the images of those individuals and send them a pre-written Twitter message.
Other celebrities, such as Nina Dobrev and Don Cheadle, have also begun using their social media presence to help Kony become a well-known name. Cheadle, however, made sure to tell his followers that they should do their research and consider all sides of the issue.
"Assisting the Ugandan government and letting them ultimately resolve and solve their internal issues are not mutually exclusive acts," Cheadle tweeted on March 7. "We need to be wary of traditionally paternalistic attitudes toward other nations and make sure we are acting as 'helpers' not encroachers."
Watch the Kony 2012 documentary below.
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