A match between South Africa and Ireland in Pool B of the Rugby World Cup at the Stade de France in the evening, a rally against police violence in Paris in the afternoon. When two current affairs subjects collide in front of the lenses of press photographers.
Saturday afternoon, more than 9,000 people marched in Paris at the call of several left-wing organizations. Agence France-Presse photographer Bertrand Guay was covering the protest when he spotted a group of South African fans partying before the evening match at the Stade de France. He tells 20 minutes the making of this image taken at the time when a police car was attacked, just 200 meters from the shooting location.
What do we see in the image?
Bertrand Guay explains to 20 minutes that it is a “next door” photo during the demonstration against police violence. He explains: “I saw some supporters and I said to myself that they looked like they wanted to pose, so I walked towards them to take a photo. » When asked about the contrast between the pink of the heart-shaped cushion and the rest of the image, he replied that “it’s much more interesting because it makes a real task” and there are “two subjects”: “partying fans” at the Rugby World Cup and “a protester trying to get his message across”. In this case, a slogan hostile to the President of the Republic: “Macron, I hate you with all my heart. »
What is the shooting context?
During the coverage of a demonstration, the AFP photographer says that he is always looking for images that are a little different from the event. He explains that he was following the procession when he saw this group of supporters near the Moulin Rouge, boulevard de Clichy. At the sight of the photographer, these fans of the South African team “put themselves in a bit of a show”. He was thinking of taking a photo of rugby supporters when “a demonstrator who saw the scene came and entered the field”. Therefore, he tightened the framing so that “it was in the foreground”, specifying: “If I had done a wider shot with the whole bar it would have been blended into the image. » And adds: “I took photos of supporters without heart but I ultimately only sent this one to the agency” because it is “contextualized with the demonstration” and that it has “a capital gain “.
The extra anecdote
The photojournalist tells 20 minutes that he had been in the demonstration for two hours and for around twenty minutes with a small group of “black blocs” of around forty individuals. There wasn’t much going on other than small trash fires. “That’s why I decided to quit to do something else and try to vary it a little. It was my recreation…and at the same time maybe that’s why I’m not in the police car being molested. (smile) » The incident took place 200 meters from him at the time of the shooting. He adds: “I found it quite calm even though there was this image of a police car that I missed. » Always concluding with a smile: “And that’s all we talked about. »