Lena Dunham biography

Synopsis

Early Days

Lena Dunham was born in New York City on May 13, 1986, to father Caroll Dunham, a painter, and mother Laurie Simmons, a photographer. She grew up in the Soho neighborhood of Manhattan and attended the prestigious Saint Anne's School in Brooklyn, where she met future Girls co-star Jemima Kirke. After graduating from high school, Dunham studied creative writing at Oberlin College. Her initial plan was to be a poet, but she soon turned to writing plays and short films. In fact, Dunham completed three shorts while in college.

Dunham's Big Break: 'Tiny Furniture'

After graduating from Oberlin, Dunham produced her own web series, Delusion Downtown Divas, about three young women raised in the art world. The up-and-comer's next project, however, would be her big break: In 2010, at age 23, Dunham produced the short Tiny Furniture, a semi-autobiographical story about a college grad who gets ditched by her significant other, and, subsequently, moves back home with her mom and sister. Dunham spent only $45,000 on the film, which she shot in her family's apartment in just 18 days. The work wound up winning the South by Southwest Film Festival's best narrative feature award.

'Girls'

Tiny Furniture's success led Dunham to writer and filmmaker Judd Apatow, producer of blockbusters such as Bridesmaids and Knocked Up. Apatow signed on to executive produce Dunham's debut original series, Girls, which airs on HBO, and follows the constant dramatic disasters and rare triumphs of a group of 20-something women living in New York City. In addition to creating and continuing to write episodes for Girls, Dunham directs and stars in the series; she plays Hannah Horvath, an aspiring writer who pays the bills as a barista, on the show. (Dunham has never taken acting lessons. However, before Girls, she had bit parts in the 2011 HBO miniseries Mildred Pierce and the indie horror movie The Innkeepers.)

Girls is known for its dark comedy antics, frequent nude scenes and risqué subject matter. Despite often being a target of critics, the show has garnered acclaim for pushing the envelope in its portrayal of young, sexually focused women, and earned Dunham four Emmy nominations and two 2013 Golden Globe Awards. The star scored media buzz following her Golden Globe acceptance speech in January 2013; during her narrative, she thanked actor Chad Lowe, poking fun at Lowe's ex, Hilary Swank, for forgetting to mention her then-husband in her 2000 Oscar-winning speech.