A veteran-made suicide prevention video has now been viewed more than 500 million times and won a national award for its message on gun safety.
Story Snapshot
- “Face Your Dragon” launched September 1, 2025, at the start of Suicide Prevention Month.
- The campaign has generated over 500 million impressions and became the top-watched Department of Veterans Affairs video on YouTube.
- It won a Capital Emmy award on June 20, 2026.
- The video stars U.S. Marine Corps veteran Rudy Reyes and is part of the VA’s “Keep It Secure” firearm safety effort.
- The message focuses on secure gun storage to create distance during a mental health crisis.
A Veteran-Led Message Reaches Millions
“Face Your Dragon” launched on September 1, 2025, the first day of Suicide Prevention Month. Refuel Agency and Gig Line Media built the campaign with the Department of Veterans Affairs and the Department of Defense. It has since passed 500 million impressions, making it the most-watched video the VA has ever posted on YouTube.
The film uses the image of a dragon to stand in for the crushing weight of a suicide crisis. U.S. Marine Corps veteran Rudy Reyes confronts that dragon on screen, joined by fellow veteran actors who represent the shared struggle many service members face after leaving the military.
Firearm Safety at the Core of the Campaign
The video is not just a mental health message. It is the centerpiece of the VA’s “Keep It Secure” initiative, which pushes veterans and their families to store firearms safely. The goal is simple: put time and distance between a moment of crisis and a lethal means, giving someone a chance to get help before making an irreversible choice.
Gig Line Media, the production company behind the film, says the mission was clear from the start. The team set out to make a PSA that would encourage veterans and their households to lock up firearms, buying critical minutes during a mental health emergency. The campaign also relaunched the KeepItSecure.net website to keep that message active in communities long after the video’s release.
Recognition and Reach in Numbers
The campaign earned a Capital Emmy on June 20, 2026, recognizing its production and its public health impact. Veterans groups have taken notice as well. The Military Officers Association of America described the project as part of a broader VA effort to make progress on veteran mental health, built with direct input from veterans themselves.
The American Legion has also highlighted the campaign, noting it launched alongside an updated “Keep It Secure” website timed to National Suicide Prevention Awareness Month. That kind of visibility matters for a population where firearm access remains a major risk factor tied to suicide.
Why Secure Storage Is the Focus
Research on veteran suicide consistently points to lethal means safety as one of the strongest tools available. Studies show that limiting access to firearms during a crisis, even temporarily, can reduce suicide risk because most crises pass faster than people expect. That evidence is why the VA and Department of Defense built their messaging strategy around storage rather than awareness alone.
The VA’s own national strategy for preventing veteran suicide calls for formative research, targeted messaging, and formal evaluation of whether campaigns actually change behavior, not just how many people see them. That framework shows the agency views reach numbers like 500 million impressions as one part of a larger effort, alongside tracking whether more veterans actually secure their firearms.
For families and veterans watching the campaign spread online, the message stays the same regardless of the metrics behind it: locking up a firearm during a hard moment can create the space needed to reach out for help. That straightforward idea, delivered through Rudy Reyes and his fellow veteran actors, is what has carried “Face Your Dragon” to hundreds of millions of views in under a year.
Sources:
military.com, prnewswire.com, giglinemedia.com, va.gov, wearethemighty.com, moaa.org, oohnews.co.kr
