Q1: Looking back at your final project, what made it stand out as a “unicorn” rather than just a well-executed event?
Winning in 2023 at the Conventa Crossover Best Event Award in the B2E category became a truly significant milestone in both my personal career and that of the company I lead, „REKURAI“. This victory, which began as a birthday balloon, transformed from a simple celebratory symbol into a visually striking directorial masterpiece, growing into a snowball that rolled across the world and, in turn, into a sphere of remarkable beauty.
“Wishday” became my springboard onto the global stage: a personal invitation to the world’s event organisers’ awards, an invitation to join the 27Names association, opportunities to deliver talks at international conferences and to lead creative workshops on the “WOW effect syndrome,” extensive attention in national media, inclusion among the 100 most influential figures in the events industry, and invitations to direct large-scale cultural projects broadcast live on national television.
As a result, my portfolio of motivated clients expanded, bringing increasingly complex and ambitious commissions that encouraged growth, team expansion, and the attraction of exceptional talent, now part of my team.
The foundation of this success lies in a distilled conceptual idea, the careful selection of laureates from the fields of culture and the arts, which ensured both impact and high aesthetic value, the principles of theatrical direction, and my ability to communicate through the language of symbols. Equally important was the client’s unconditional trust and their investment in the project’s visual expression. It was the synergy between trust, artistic resonance, aesthetic refinement, and conceptual clarity that made the work so visible.
The symbols we discovered proved to be universally recognisable and understandable, not only locally, but globally. Moreover, the idea itself was deeply human and engaging, and therefore profoundly affecting. Quite simply, it was the fulfilment of a professional dream.
Q2: If you had to define one shift in the events industry between 2023 and 2026, what has fundamentally changed?
An oversaturation of unique concepts has given way to a priority on safe, seamless events, where each individual receives personal attention: without queues, without stress, without risk, and without the need for contingency plans A, B, or C. The aspiration now is simply for the event to take place, perhaps even modest in form, but executed with impeccable smoothness.
Q3: The competition is evolving into the Unicorn Awards. How would you define a “unicorn event”?
In my view, it must be a unique event, a distinctive directorial solution, or an original and unrepeatable occurrence that becomes a guiding star, a benchmark and point of reference for other creators, organisers, and clients. It is a visionary event, one that outpaces its time and sets new standards of progress.
Q4: Do you think the industry is becoming more focused on impact or spectacle, and where do you stand?
For me personally, spectacle is of great importance. It must be nourishment for the eyes, a mood-stimulating experience, and an engagement of other senses through music, taste, scent, and sensation. From this, impact naturally emerges.
Impact is a multilayered journey toward a goal. Let us imagine attempting to capture that impact in a photograph, fixing it in a form that is unique, recognisable, and capable of telling a story. Inevitably, we arrive at something visible-something that becomes, in essence, a spectacle.
Q5: What is the most underestimated challenge in delivering outstanding events today?
I am convinced that events can shape human behaviour, habits, and attitudes. Yet too often, the focus remains limited to the impression of the day, the immediate result, the successful execution. Rarely is the long-term impact measured, or lasting value intentionally created.
In my course – event direction and organisation, it is essential to answer seven fundamental questions. One of them is lasting value.
I am also a practitioner-lecturer. I teach students the theory and methodology of successful events, as well as creative techniques, encouraging them to apply these in practice. In my course-event direction and organisation, it is essential to answer seven fundamental questions. One of them is lasting value.
A student must first understand what this means and incorporate it into their event concept. This becomes a powerful motivation: to justify the event to subcontractors and participants alike, to explain why it matters. By creating this event, we generate new forms of value, not merely emotional, but measurable and quantifiable, and therefore something that can be set as a clear objective.
If we achieve that objective, we can confidently say the event was successful. At that point, participant surveys become unnecessary-unless they serve to refine new approaches for even more effective outcomes when the event is repeated.
“Often, clients do not fully know what they want, nor do they understand how to turn an event into a tool for achieving objectives.”
Q6: Where do you see the biggest gap between what clients want and what events actually deliver?
Often, clients do not fully know what they want, nor do they understand how to turn an event into a tool for achieving objectives, how to define those objectives and translate them into KPIs.
A simple example: if a new product is being introduced at an event, logically, the goal would be successful sales. But if you were to ask the client how many units they aim to sell, or what result would be considered successful, such figures rarely make their way into the event brief. Instead, it is dominated by company values, philosophy, corporate messaging, and brandbook colour nuances, but not numbers.
I do not generalise absolutely, but this is often the case. In my view, an event must lead to results. Once we know the desired outcome, it becomes far easier to identify the most effective means of achieving it.
Q7: Is there a recent project or idea you are particularly proud of, and why?
I am deeply proud of the event “The Great Ciurlys,” (DIDYSIS CIURLYS) created for Druskininkai as Lithuania’s cultural capital. Its impact continues to resonate even a year and a half after its realisation. It reached a vast audience across Lithuania and became an artefact with the release of a vinyl record featuring music created for the event.
It has become a benchmark for other cultural capitals in the country. It is both a personal and a collective “unicorn” – a standard, educational material for children in music schools, and a resource for theatre and event directors, as well as choreographers.
I am also proud of the National Theatre Awards “Golden Stage Crosses”. Both of these projects succeeded in uniting the live audience with television viewers. Each is imbued with theatrical dramaturgy, a strong conceptual core, and emotional impact. Their resonance and emotional intensity have been exceptional. I take great pride in “The Time Machine,” recognised as the world’s best gala dinner. It is a project I have not been able to replicate, not due to a lack of talent, but to a lack of ambition. No other client has yet sought to recreate or pursue something similar. It is akin to a painter creating a masterpiece or a musician composing a global hit.
These three recent projects are the gemstones of my collection of “jewel-like” events.
Q8: What do you believe will shape the future of events?
Ideas and money. Those who possess resources will seek out the very best ideas.
Discover more of Rekurai’s award-winning projects here.
