Director, screenwriter and writer. He graduated with a degree in English and sociology from Trinity College in Dublin. He directed award-winning documentaries about Ireland, such as The Road to God Knows Where (1988) that won the special jury award at the European Film Awards. In mid-1990’s he directed the documentary series God Bless America, which he shot in different American cities and which offers commentaries and viewpoints from famous American authors such as Gore Vidal, Neil Simon, Scott Turow, Marsha Hunt, Patricia Cornwell and Garrison Keillor. In his later documentaries he continued to research different topics from Irish history and culture. One of the best ones is The Ghost of Roger Casement (2002) about an executed Irish rebel, which was the best documentary according to the Irish Film and TV Academy in 2003. Another great documentary is The Yellow Bittern (2009) about the famous Irish musician Liam Clancy, made shortly before his death. Gilsenan also directed the experimental film All Souls' Day (1997); short feature Zulu 9 (2001.); experimental film Six Nuns Die in Convent Inferno based on the poem by Paul Duncan; feature film Timbuktu (2004) and until now his last feature film Unless (2016). Besides directing films, he also directs in theatres.