GAZE International LGBTQIA Film Festival

GAZE is Ireland's LGBTQIA+ film festival, held in Dublin around the August bank holiday weekend. It began in 1992 as the Lesbian and Gay Film Festival, founded by Yvonne O'Reilly and Kevin Sexton at the Irish Film Centre, a year before Ireland decriminalised homosexuality, and took the GAZE name in 2007.

The 34th edition ran from 28 July to 3 August 2026 at the Light House Cinema, the Irish Film Institute and outdoors on the Living Canvas at IMMA. It opened with Pedro Almodóvar's Bitter Christmas and closed with Jaripeo, Efraín Mojica's film about rodeo culture and queer identity in the director's Mexican hometown. The 14 features also took in the Billie Jean King documentary Give Me The Ball! and Cara Holmes's Irish documentary Lesbian Lines, alongside a mystery film, six Irish shorts and a talent development lab.

The 2027 dates hadn't been announced when we checked; expect late July running into the bank holiday. Popular screenings sell out, so book once the programme is out.