Gizra Highlights Bare-Bones Theming Approach with Pluggable Entity View Builder

At DrupalCon Atlanta 2025, Amitai Burstein of Gizra presented a streamlined approach to theming in Drupal using the Pluggable Entity View Builder (PEVB), offering developers an alternative to complex layout tools and field UI configurations.

Gizra’s method, built into its “Drupal Starter” framework, emphasizes code-driven theming that removes reliance on the traditional Drupal field display settings and layout managers. By using a system of reusable Twig components and paired PHP “theme traits,” developers gain precise control over output and styling while maintaining clean, predictable structures. Each Twig file serves a single styling or layout function—promoting clarity, reuse, and easier debugging.

This architecture supports what Gizra calls “rigid flexibility”—giving clients a curated set of components to mix and match without the risk of breaking designs or brand standards. The approach rejects drag-and-drop tools in favor of pre-structured paragraph types and render arrays built purely through code.

PEVB handles the full rendering pipeline: it fetches entity data, converts it into raw values, and passes those to theme traits that map directly to Twig templates. This eliminates ambiguity about where data comes from and ensures that what works in static style guides renders identically in production.

Amitai noted that Gizra intentionally avoids preprocess functions and layout builders, relying instead on deterministic code to render consistent and maintainable front-end output. This method reduces developer guesswork and aligns with Gizra’s philosophy of building scalable, developer-friendly systems for clients with high traffic and strict design standards.