Content warning: This piece discusses domestic violence and abuse. International Women’s Day is oftentimes a day of celebration — but it can also be a time to bring awareness to the issues many women around the globe face, including domestic abuse. And in 2025, fashion powerhouse Yves Saint Laurent (YSL) is using its platform to shift our attention to the very real — and often hidden — warning signs of abuse in a new short film.
On March 6, YSL released the short film Don’t Call It Love. The almost two minute-long video features several seemingly romantic scenes of a couple throughout Paris, France. However, under the surface, the short film subtly unpacks the hidden “warning signs” of abuse within a relationship, and calls for the audience to re-examine what abuse in a relationship can really look like.
Don’t Call It Love brings attention to five out of the nine warning signs of intimate partner violence (IPV): intrusion, stalking, jealousy, manipulation, and isolation. (Other signs include intimidation, ignoring, blackmailing, humiliation, and control.) While the short film doesn’t identify these behaviors as abusive until the end, many viewers (especially women) may have been able to pick up on the signs of abuse before the short film’s “twist.”
The film was created as a part of YSL’s “Abuse Is Not Love” campaign, which partners with non-profit organizations to provide training and education about IPV. To date, the program has donated over $5 million to grassroots organizations tackling IPV, educated over 1.3 million people worldwide on the warning signs of abuse, and partnered with leading experts and psychologists to develop meaningful awareness initiatives.
In a time where many corporations and companies are neglecting social responsibility, YSL’s Don’t Call It Love brings the conversation of violence against women to the forefront — and it’s an important one.
If you or someone you know is experiencing domestic abuse, call 911 or the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1(800) 799-SAFE (7233) or visit thehotline.org