Lena Dunham
Lena Dunham is an acclaimed American actor, filmmaker, and writer, recognized primarily for her work on the HBO series *Girls*, which she created, wrote, and starred in. Born on May 13, 1986, in New York City, she grew up in an artistic family, with her father being a painter and her mother a photographer. Dunham made her mark in the film industry with her independent feature *Tiny Furniture* (2010), a semi-autobiographical film that helped propel her into the limelight.
Her career continued to flourish with *Girls* (2012-2017), a series that candidly showcases the lives of young women navigating personal and professional challenges in New York City. The show garnered critical acclaim and multiple awards, including several Golden Globes and Emmy nominations for Dunham. Beyond acting, Dunham's projects often reflect her unique perspective and willingness to challenge conventional norms, making her a significant figure in contemporary entertainment.
In her personal life, Dunham has been open about her struggles with mental health, including obsessive-compulsive disorder, and has used her platform to discuss these issues candidly. She was in a long-term relationship with musician Jack Antonoff from 2012 to 2018. Through her work and personal narrative, Dunham has inspired many with her authenticity and creativity.
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Subject Terms
Lena Dunham
Actor and filmmaker
- Born: May 13, 1986
- Place of Birth: New York, New York
Contribution: Lena Dunham is an award-winning actor and a filmmaker, best known for creating and starring in the HBO comedy series Girls. She found fame with her independent feature Tiny Furniture in 2010, and she appears in the films The Innkeepers (2011), This Is 40 (2012), and Once upon a Time in Hollywood(2019).
Background
Lena Dunham was born on May 13, 1986, in New York City, daughter of Carroll Dunham, a painter, and Laurie Simmons, a photographer. She grew up on Long Island with her parents and sister, Grace Dunham.
As a child, Dunham was plagued with sleep issues and afraid to fall asleep. She was afraid of death—a fear she carried into adulthood. She was also a hypochondriac and obsessed with the number eight, so her parents sent her to see a therapist. Doctors diagnosed her with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) and prescribed her antidepressants. By high school, her condition was more manageable, and by college, she was able to wean herself off most of her medications.
Dunham started writing short stories and poems when she was in elementary school at Friends Seminary. She then attended St. Ann’s, where she met Jemima Kirke, who would become her future Girls costar. After high school, she attended Oberlin College in Oberlin, Ohio. She began writing films as a student and graduated in 2008 with a degree in creative writing.
Career
Dunham directed, wrote, and starred in the web-based series Delusional Downtown Divas, which had its debut in 2009. The satire focused on three artsy girls who wear silly outfits in an effort to get noticed in the art world. The show became an Internet sensation and garnered a cult following. It became so popular that the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum commissioned a live performance from Dunham and her costars.
Also in 2009, Dunham released her first independent feature, Creative Nonfiction, at the South by Southwest (SXSW) music and arts festival in Austin, Texas. The film starred Dunham as Ella, a college student who struggles to finish a screenplay that she needs to graduate, but is distracted by love.
Around this time, Dunham worked at several different jobs for short periods of time. She worked in a restaurant, a toy store, a law firm, and as a babysitter. When she decided to make her next film, she borrowed $50,000 from her family. The film, Tiny Furniture, was released in 2010.
In this semi-autobiographical film, Dunham portrays a recent college graduate named Aura who has just had her heart broken by her boyfriend. Dunham enlisted the help of her family in the film. Her real-life mother, Laurie Simmons, plays her on-screen mother, and her sister, Grace Dunham, plays her on-screen sister. The film follows Aura as she moves back in with her mother and sister, tries to figure out her life, and pursues the attention of a handsome chef.
Although it received mixed reviews, Tiny Furniture catapulted Dunham into the spotlight. She received an Independent Spirit Award for best first screenplay in 2011.
In 2011, Dunham played a nurse in the HBO miniseries Mildred Pierce and had a small role in the independent horror The Innkeepers. Around this time, she began developing a comedy series with director Judd Apatow for HBO.
The result was Girls, which debuted in 2012 and ran through 2017. Similar to Dunham’s other work, the series is based on real-life events. The show follows a group of young women struggling and stumbling their way through relationships and jobs in New York City. The show features Dunham as Hannah, who has been cut off financially by her parents; her friend Marnie (Allison Williams); her other friend Jessa (Jemima Kirke); and Jessa’s cousin Shoshanna (Zosia Mamet). Each of Dunham’s costars on the show had a famous parent. Allison Williams is the daughter of newscaster Brian Williams. Jemima Kirke’s father is Bad Company drummer Simon Kirke. Zosia Mamet is the daughter of playwright David Mamet.
The show was an instant hit with fans and critics alike. After the first season in 2012, Dunham received three Primetime Emmy nods and the pilot won the Directors Guild of America award for comedy series. The following year, she won a Gracie Allen Award for outstanding director and a Golden Globe for best actress. In addition, the cast of Girls received a Golden Globe for best television series. Dunham was again nominated for Emmy Awards for outstanding director in 2013 and best actress in 2013 and 2014. She received a Golden Globe for best actress in 2013 for her work Girls.
Dunham wrote the screenplay for the 2012 independent Nobody Walks; however, the seduction drama was poorly received by critics and audiences alike. That year Dunham returned to acting on the big screen for Apatow’s This Is 40 and the independent Supporting Characters.
While continuing her work on Girls, Dunham played supporting roles in several films, including the comedy Happy Christmas (2014), the French drama Sky (2015), and the sports mockumentary 7 Days in Hell (2015). The following year Dunham produced the LGBT documentary Suited, appeared in the Laurie Simmons drama My Art, and voiced a major role for My Entire High School Is Sinking into the Sea, a critically acclaimed post-apocalyptic animation. Dunham later wrote the eight-part teleplay Camping, which aired in 2018, and landed a role in Quentin Tarantino's acclaimed dramedy Once Upon a Time in Hollywood (2019). She followed Once Upon a Time in Hollywood with roles in the films Sharp Stick (2022) and Treasure (2024).
Impact
Utilizing her unique voice as a writer and her willingness to take risks as a director, Dunham has established herself as one of the most successful and well-known creative minds in the entertainment industry. Not one to adhere to Hollywood’s traditional standards of beauty, Dunham has embraced her individuality and inspired countless fans with her self-confidence. Her directorial work was even showcased alongside that of other female film directors in the 2018 documentary Half the Picture.
Personal Life
Dunham dated fun. guitarist Jack Antonoff from 2012 to 2018. The two had owned a home together.
Bibliography
Danes, Claire. “Lena Dunham.” Interview, Apr. 2012: 60+. Print.
Emmys.com. “2013 Emmy Award Nominations.” Emmys.com. Academy of Television Arts & Sciences, July 2013. Web. 11 July 2013.
Hiatt, Brian. “Lena Dunham: Girl on Top.” Rolling Stone. Rolling Stone, 28 Feb. 2013. Web. 11 July 2013.
Kraimer, Zack. “Lena Dunham: Top 10 Facts You Need to Know.” Heavy. Heavy, 15 Jan. 2013. Web. 11 July 2013.
"Lena Dunham." Internet Movie Database, 2024, www.imdb.com/name/nm2501633/. Accessed 23 Sept. 2024.
Nussbaum, Emily. “It’s Different for ‘Girls.”’ New York. New York Media, 25 Mar. 2012. Web. 11 July 2013.
Pomerantz, Dorothy. “Bradley Cooper and Lena Dunham Top Our List of Celebrity 100 Up and Comers.” Forbes. Forbes.com, 26 June 2013. Web. 11 July 2013.