#GunsNHawks is a project that came as a response to a bill passed by the Kansas Board of Regents regarding concealed weapon carry in public spaces. Starting on 2017, schools will have to allow concealed guns on campus unless security measures and staff are placed on each building entrance, which is cost prohibitive and unlikely to happen.

I started a social media campaign in which I asked students and people in the Lawrence area to use the hashtag #GunsNHawks to give their opinion on the matter. For four consecutive nights (May 1 – May 4), I projected animations composed of all of those comments on to buildings around the KU campus such as the school dorms, halls, libraries and ended on the building that hosts the decision making and power offices of the university.

Regardless of which side of the spectrum people’s opinions stood, all comments that used the hashtag were projected. The goal of the project was not to impose a specific point of view but rather to start a conversation with the different perspectives students had about the issue. Given the controversiality of the matter, it was important to allow the community to make their voice public in regards to an issue that affects everybody on campus.

These were my weapons:
Facebook: @GunsNHawks
Twitter: @GunsNHawks

About the Filmmaker

Submitted by Miguel Angel Calderon

Spanish AND Peruvian. Visual artist and filmmaker. Initially trained as an engineer, Miguel Angel switched his focus to visual mediums he could use to explore the way in which human interaction and perception is influenced by our social constructions and technology. As part of a generation that lives the majority of life in virtual spaces, he examines the nature of the gaze in the realms of body image, voyeurism, gender perceptions and the interactions between ourselves and the self-portrait outlets we have at our disposal.

He works in every media available and likes to talk in the third person because that’s what’s expected here. However, expectations will be challenged and conversations will arise.

Filmmaker’s Website:  http://macalderon.com