Gabrielė Urbonaitė (Lithuania)
Gabrielė Urbonaitė is a Lithuanian writer, director and editor. She holds a BFA in Film from Emerson College and an MFA in Screenwriting & Directing from Columbia University. She directed several short films, including The Swimmer that won National Lithuanian Film Award “Silver Crane”. Renovation is her debut feature.
“Renovation” – Feature Fiction
The building's renovation makes Ilona, a perfectionist who seeks to get settled and successful by the age of 30, realize that true renovation begins from the inside.
Present day Vilnius, Lithuania. A perfectionist 29-year-old Ilona lives under pressure to get settled and successful by the age of 30. She’s close to it: nominated for the translator of the year award, she's in a promising relationship with her boyfriend Matas, and together, they finally found a perfect apartment. However, the building’s renovation begins, exposing cracks not only in the building, but also in their relationship. A new connection with Oleg, one of the construction workers from Ukraine, makes Ilona question whether she really wants to settle down and have a family. Echoes of the war in Ukraine remind Ilona that life's fragile, and she starts reconsidering how she wants to live it.
