Laurynas Bareia was born in Kaunas. He holds a bachelors degree in mathematics from Vilnius University and in cinematography from Lithuanian Academy of Music and Theatre. In 2016 he completed his studies for a masters degree in film directing. His first short film Dembava (2014) premiered at PFF and made it to the Top 5 list of Cineuropa. The Camel (2016), "By the pool" (2017) and "Caucasus" (2018) which premiered in Venice and Locarno. Dummy (2020) premiered at Berlin Film Festival and played at more than 15 festivals like Clermont-Ferrand, Palm Springs and Trieste. Pilgrims is his feature directorial debut.