GAYS AGAINST GUNS

SHORT SYNOPSIS:
AUDIENCE AWARD WINNER and SPECIAL JURY MENTION. Dublin International Film Festival.

A gripping portrait of America’s gun violence epidemic, told through the eyes of an immigrant who left Ireland when being gay was still illegal, and came to the U.S. seeking the gay American dream but found something very different.

Filmed over the ten years from the mass shooting in the Pulse nightclub in Orlando to recent ICE killings in Minneapolis - the film follows our narrator as he documents the activist group Gays Against Guns who formed in the wake of this massacre.
The film blends personal reflection with GAG’s fearless, outrageous and hilarious political theatrics, as they use direct action to fight the gun industry and the politicians that do their bidding. Legendary filmmaker and GAG member John Waters also chimes in with his sharp, witty commentary.
The film also tells deeply moving survivor stories: Kit, loving mother of Bailey, a Black transgender teen shot dead at 17; and Antonius, an Indonesian artist who channels the trauma of surviving a shooting into fierce activism.
An universally inspiring David and Goliath story for these unprecedented turbulent times, the film is a testament to resilience, community, and the power of activism.

  • Paul Rowley
    Director
    The Red Tree, Seaview, This One's For The Ladies.
  • Paul Rowley
    Writer
  • Nicky Gogan
    Producer
    Seaview, Lost in France, Last HIjack, The Red Tree, New York Our Time.
  • Karla Healion
    Producer
  • Gene Graham
    Producer
    This One's For thr Ladies, The Godfather of Disco.
  • Paul Rowley
    Producer
    This One's For the Ladies, Seaview, The Red Tree, New York Our Time.
  • Karla Healion
    Producer
    Never Stop The Action. Lost In France. New York, Our Time.
  • John Waters
    Key Cast
    "Self"
  • Gays Against Guns
    Key Cast
    "Self"
  • Kit Beane
    Key Cast
    "Self"
  • Antonius Wiriadjaja
    Key Cast
    "Self"
  • Project Type:
    Documentary, Feature
  • Runtime:
    1 hour 26 minutes
  • Completion Date:
    January 1, 2026
  • Production Budget:
    250,000 USD
  • Country of Origin:
    Ireland, United States
  • Country of Filming:
    United States
  • Language:
    English
  • Shooting Format:
    Digital
  • Aspect Ratio:
    16:9
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    No
  • Student Project:
    No
  • Digital Cinema Package:
    Unavailable
  • Dublin International Film Festival
    Dublin
    Ireland
    February 23, 2026
    Domestic Premeire
    Audience Award. Special Jury mention in competition.
Director Biography - Paul Rowley

Paul Rowley is an Irish filmmaker based in Brooklyn, New York. For over twenty years he has been making work that combines elements of documentary, video art, and fiction into immersive and often politically engaged films. His work has screened at the Centre Pompidou, Berlin Film Festival, Irish Museum of Modern Art, Irish Film Institute, SXSW and many film festivals internationally. Past feature documentaries include SEAVIEW, a film made in collaboration with asylum seekers in the former Butlin’s holiday camp in Mosney, Ireland, and THE RED TREE which tells the little known story of Mussolini’s prison island for gay men. He has twice been nominated for Irish Films and Television Awards and was recipient of the Irish Museum of Modern Art’s Glen Dimplex Award. His latest film GAYS AGAINST GUNS follows a radical direct action group of LGBTQ+ activists as they work to end the American gun violence epidemic.

Add Director Biography
Director Statement

"I met Gays Against Gun at the New York City Pride march in 2016 - their first protest, less that two weeks after the Pulse Nightclub massacre. Ten years later I‘m still following these incredible activists, camera in hand. GAG’s unique tactics
bring hope to a movement that is most often thought of as hopeless. As an immigrant and an outsider in America, I found a kindred spirit in GAG’s brash optimism, and I feel my own history allows me some insights that American filmmakers may not have tapped into. Growing up in Ireland in the 1970’s, I never thought I would see peace here. I certainly never thought we would have gay marriage in my lifetime. Yet here we are. There’s always hope."