How to Make an American Quilt

The story centers on the stories of several women in a quilting bee as they construct a wedding quilt as a gift for a members' granddaughter, Finn Dodd (Winona Ryder). Finn is a Berkeley graduate student visiting her grandmother Hy (Ellen Burstyn) and great aunt Glady Jo (Anne Bancroft) in Grasse, California, over the summer to work on her master's thesis. During her stay the women share their stories, which leads her to reflect on her life and where it is headed.