Lena Dunham

Directing

Lena Dunham

Born 1986-05-13 · New York, New York, USA

Lena Dunham (/ˈliːnə ˈdʌnəm/; born May 13, 1986) is an American writer, director, actress, and producer. She is the creator, writer, and star of the HBO television series Girls (2012–2017), for which she received several Emmy Award nominations and two Golden Globe Awards. Dunham also directed several episodes of Girls and became the first woman to win the Directors Guild of America Award for Outstanding Directing – Comedy Series. She started her career writing, directing, and starring in her semi-autobiographical independent film Tiny Furniture (2010), for which she won an Independent Spirit Award for Best First Screenplay. She has since written and directed the 2022 films Sharp Stick and Catherine Called Birdy. In 2013, Dunham was included in the annual Time100 list of the most influential people in the world. In 2014, Dunham released her first book, Not That Kind of Girl: A Young Woman Tells You What She's "Learned". In 2015, along with Girls showrunner Jenni Konner, Dunham created the publication Lenny Letter, a feminist online newsletter. The publication ran for three years before its discontinuation in late 2018. Dunham briefly appeared in films such as Supporting Characters, This Is 40 (2012), and Happy Christmas (2014). She voiced Mary in the 2016 film My Entire High School Sinking Into the Sea, which premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival. Aside from Girls, she has played guest roles on television in Scandal and The Simpsons (both 2015). In 2017, she portrayed Valerie Solanas in American Horror Story: Cult. Dunham's work and her outspoken presence on social media and in interviews have attracted significant controversy, praise, criticism, and media scrutiny throughout her career.

Acting credits

Once Upon a Time... in Hollywood poster
7.4

Los Angeles, 1969. TV star Rick Dalton, a struggling actor specializing in westerns, and stuntman Cliff Booth, his best friend, try to survive in a constantly changing movie industry. Dalton is the neighbor of the young and promising actress and model Sharon Tate, who has just married the prestigious Polish director Roman Polanski…

Once Upon a Time... in Hollywood

2019

This Is 40 poster
5.9

Pete and Debbie are both about to turn 40, their kids hate each other, both of their businesses are failing, they're on the verge of losing their house, and their relationship is threatening to fall apart.

This Is 40

2012

Sharp Stick poster
4.9

Sarah Jo is a naive 26-year-old living on the fringes of Hollywood with her mother and sister. When she begins an affair with her older employer, she is thrust into an education on sexuality, loss and power.

Sharp Stick

2022

100 Years poster
6.0

An animated history of American health care provider, Planned Parenthood.

100 Years

2017

Taylor Swift: The 1989 World Tour - Live poster
8.4

Filmed in front of 76,000 fans at the ANZ Stadium in Sydney, Australia, "The 1989 World Tour Live" captures Taylor Swift's entire performance while also mixing in behind-the-scene, rehearsal, and special guest footage from her 1989 Tour.

Taylor Swift: The 1989 World Tour - Live

2015

The Stand In poster
5.3

When ordered to serve a year in rehab, actress Candy hires her on-set stand-in to take her place. The unassuming woman flips the script and steals her identity, career and boyfriend in this hilarious comedy about trading places.

The Stand In

2020

The House of the Devil poster
6.2

A young college student who’s struggling financially takes a strange babysitting job which coincides with a full lunar eclipse. She slowly realizes her clients harbor a terrifying secret, putting her life in mortal danger.

The House of the Devil

2009

Side by Side poster
7.3

Since the invention of cinema, the standard format for recording moving images has been film. Over the past two decades, a new form of digital filmmaking has emerged, creating a groundbreaking evolution in the medium. Keanu Reeves explores the development of cinema and the impact of digital filmmaking via in-depth interviews with Hollywood masters, such as James Cameron, David Fincher, David Lynch, Christopher Nolan, Martin Scorsese, George Lucas, Steven Soderbergh, and many more.

Side by Side

2012

This Changes Everything poster
6.2

An investigative look and analysis of gender disparity in Hollywood, featuring accounts from well-known actors, executives and artists in the Industry.

This Changes Everything

2019

7 Days in Hell poster
6.5

A fictional documentary-style expose on the rivalry between two tennis stars who battled it out in a 1999 match that lasted seven days.

7 Days in Hell

2015

Music poster
5.2

Zu, a free spirit estranged from her family, suddenly finds herself the sole guardian of her half-sister, Music, a teenager on the autism spectrum whose whole world order has been beautifully crafted by her late grandmother. The film soon challenges whether it is Zu or Music who has a better view of the world, and that love, trust, and being able to be there for each other is everything.

Music

2021

Don't Think Twice poster
6.4

An improv group deals with several crises, including the loss of their lease and one member hitting the big time.

Don't Think Twice

2016

The Innkeepers poster
5.4

During the final days at the Yankee Pedlar Inn, two employees determined to reveal the hotel's haunted past begin to experience disturbing events as old guests check in for a stay.

The Innkeepers

2012

Happy Christmas poster
5.1

After a breakup with her boyfriend, a young woman moves in with her older brother, his wife, and their 2-year-old son.

Happy Christmas

2014

I Wish You All the Best poster
5.5

A non-binary teen is kicked out of their North Carolina home after coming out to their ultra-religious parents. As a result, they move in with their estranged sister and her husband. Though the two are welcoming, they continue to struggle with anxiety further exacerbated by their parents' rejection. As such, they try to keep a low profile at school. However, after they meet a proudly bisexual classmate, their life begins to look a little more hopeful.

I Wish You All the Best

2025

Everything Is Copy poster
7.4

A candid portrait of writer/director Nora Ephron, directed by her son, journalist Jacob Bernstein.

Everything Is Copy

2015

Treasure poster
6.5

A music journalist accompanies her father, a charmingly stubborn Holocaust survivor, on a journey to his homeland. While she's eager to make sense of her family's past, her dad has an agenda of his own.

Treasure

2024

Gavin & Stacey: A Fond Farewell poster
7.5

An uplifting and touching documentary special which tells the story of one of Britain's best loved sitcoms as it comes to an end after 17 years. Featuring unprecedented access to creators James Corden and Ruth Jones as well as the cast and crew, including filming the final episode as they all say goodbye to the much-cherished show.

Gavin & Stacey: A Fond Farewell

2025

Supporting Characters poster
5.8

Two New York film editors balance their personal relationships while reworking a movie in crisis.

Supporting Characters

2013

PressPausePlay poster
7.1

The digital revolution of the last decade has unleashed creativity and talent of people in an unprecedented way, unleashing unlimited creative opportunites. But does democratized culture mean better art, film, music and literature or is true talent instead flooded and drowned in the vast digital ocean of mass culture? Is it cultural democracy or mediocrity? This is the question addressed by PressPausePlay, a documentary film containing interviews with some of the world’s most influential creators of the digital era.

PressPausePlay

2011

Sky poster
6.2

A woman embarks on a journey alone across the United States after fleeing from her violent husband.

Sky

2016

Tiny Furniture poster
5.6

After graduating from film school, Aura returns to New York to live with her photographer mother, Siri, and her sister, Nadine, who has just finished high school. Aura is directionless and wonders where to go next in her career and her life. She takes a job in a restaurant and tries unsuccessfully to develop relationships with men, including Keith, a chef where she works, and cult Internet star Jed.

Tiny Furniture

2010

Half the Picture poster
6.6

At a pivotal moment for gender equality in Hollywood, successful women directors talk about their art, lives and careers.

Half the Picture

2018

Norman Lear: Just Another Version of You poster
7.1

Arguably the most influential creator, writer, and producer in the history of television, Norman Lear brought primetime into step with the times. Using comedy and indelible characters, his legendary 1970s shows such as All In the Family, Maude, Good Times, and The Jeffersons, boldly cracked open dialogue and shifted the national consciousness, injecting enlightened humanism into sociopolitical debates on race, class, creed, and feminism.

Norman Lear: Just Another Version of You

2016

Behind the camera

Catherine Called Birdy poster
6.0

A teenage girl in Medieval England navigates life and tries to avoid the arranged marriages her father maps out for her.

Catherine Called Birdy

2022

Catherine Called Birdy poster
6.0

A teenage girl in Medieval England navigates life and tries to avoid the arranged marriages her father maps out for her.

Catherine Called Birdy

2022

Sharp Stick poster
4.9

Sarah Jo is a naive 26-year-old living on the fringes of Hollywood with her mother and sister. When she begins an affair with her older employer, she is thrust into an education on sexuality, loss and power.

Sharp Stick

2022

Sharp Stick poster
4.9

Sarah Jo is a naive 26-year-old living on the fringes of Hollywood with her mother and sister. When she begins an affair with her older employer, she is thrust into an education on sexuality, loss and power.

Sharp Stick

2022

Sharp Stick poster
4.9

Sarah Jo is a naive 26-year-old living on the fringes of Hollywood with her mother and sister. When she begins an affair with her older employer, she is thrust into an education on sexuality, loss and power.

Sharp Stick

2022

100 Years poster
6.0

An animated history of American health care provider, Planned Parenthood.

100 Years

2017

100 Years poster
6.0

An animated history of American health care provider, Planned Parenthood.

100 Years

2017

Good Sex poster
NR

After spending a decade in a failed relationship, successful couples’ therapist Ally is turning 40 and is pushed, kicking and screaming, by her best friend back into the hopeless New York dating scene. But Ally finds her life pulled in opposing directions as she falls into a steamy fling with a 20-something Brooklyn hipster just as she begins a promising, more conventional relationship with Alan, a successful 50-something in Manhattan.

Good Sex

Good Sex poster
NR

After spending a decade in a failed relationship, successful couples’ therapist Ally is turning 40 and is pushed, kicking and screaming, by her best friend back into the hopeless New York dating scene. But Ally finds her life pulled in opposing directions as she falls into a steamy fling with a 20-something Brooklyn hipster just as she begins a promising, more conventional relationship with Alan, a successful 50-something in Manhattan.

Good Sex

Good Sex poster
NR

After spending a decade in a failed relationship, successful couples’ therapist Ally is turning 40 and is pushed, kicking and screaming, by her best friend back into the hopeless New York dating scene. But Ally finds her life pulled in opposing directions as she falls into a steamy fling with a 20-something Brooklyn hipster just as she begins a promising, more conventional relationship with Alan, a successful 50-something in Manhattan.

Good Sex

No artwork available
NR

Two lesbian neighbors in London's East End navigate romance and connection through messy, heartfelt situations, going to ridiculous lengths to get closer to each other.

Notice Me

2026

Nobody Walks poster
4.8

A young woman's arrival sparks a surge of energy into a laid-back, artistic Los Angeles household, forcing the residents to confront their own fears and desires in an intricate dance of lust, denial and deception.

Nobody Walks

2012

Tiny Furniture poster
5.6

After graduating from film school, Aura returns to New York to live with her photographer mother, Siri, and her sister, Nadine, who has just finished high school. Aura is directionless and wonders where to go next in her career and her life. She takes a job in a restaurant and tries unsuccessfully to develop relationships with men, including Keith, a chef where she works, and cult Internet star Jed.

Tiny Furniture

2010

Tiny Furniture poster
5.6

After graduating from film school, Aura returns to New York to live with her photographer mother, Siri, and her sister, Nadine, who has just finished high school. Aura is directionless and wonders where to go next in her career and her life. She takes a job in a restaurant and tries unsuccessfully to develop relationships with men, including Keith, a chef where she works, and cult Internet star Jed.

Tiny Furniture

2010

Best Friends poster
2.0

In this short, a voice-over by Adam Driver explains how best-friendship works.

Best Friends

2013

Best Friends poster
2.0

In this short, a voice-over by Adam Driver explains how best-friendship works.

Best Friends

2013

No artwork available
5.4

This is what it looks like when Lena Dunham, Spike Jonze, Avicii, Vanessa Hudgens and Michael Shannon get together. Dunham wrote a short film for Sunday night's YouTube Music Awards about a heartbroken guy (Nick Lashaway) whose ex-girlfriend (Hudgens) is hooking up with a daft DJ (Shannon). Things start to look up for the protagonist when he meets an impetuous young woman (Dree Hemingway), but the pleasure is only fleeting thanks to the film's finale, which was chosen by the viewing audience: "a double tragedy" in the vein of "Romeo & Juliet" set to the beat of Avicii's "Wake Me Up" and played for laughs.

Choose You

2013

Dealing poster
NR

Lena Dunham directed short.

Dealing

2007

No artwork available
NR

Plot TBA. Based on Michael Lewis' New York Times bestseller 'Going Infinite: The Rise and Fall of a New Tycoon'.

Going Infinite

Open the Door poster
1.7

Practically a home movie, Lena (Dunham) asks her parents to say specific lines for a film she's shooting while they request to be let in her apartment.

Open the Door

2007

Open the Door poster
1.7

Practically a home movie, Lena (Dunham) asks her parents to say specific lines for a film she's shooting while they request to be let in her apartment.

Open the Door

2007

Cover Girl poster
NR

Vogue Magazine Short; A nervous Lena Dunham calls up friend Hamish Bowles to practice posing for her cover shoot the next day.

Cover Girl

2014

Creative Nonfiction poster
3.4

College student Ella is completely focused on her ambiguously romantic relationship with her dorm-mate, Chris. She is so consumed by trying to understand his behavior that she's neglecting the screenplay she is supposed to write in order to graduate. When she does sit down to work on the script, her increasingly awkward social life bleeds onto the page and her work begins to express her true feelings about her own situation.

Creative Nonfiction

2009

Creative Nonfiction poster
3.4

College student Ella is completely focused on her ambiguously romantic relationship with her dorm-mate, Chris. She is so consumed by trying to understand his behavior that she's neglecting the screenplay she is supposed to write in order to graduate. When she does sit down to work on the script, her increasingly awkward social life bleeds onto the page and her work begins to express her true feelings about her own situation.

Creative Nonfiction

2009