Girls writer, director, executive producer, and actress Lena Dunham is looking to be “a voice” for not only her generation, but the next as well. During an interview with author Ariel Levy at the 15th Annual New Yorker Festival on Friday, Dunham revealed her plans to adapt, and hopefully direct Karen Cushman’s coming-of-age tale Catherine, Called Birdy, Variety reports.
Winner of the Newbery Honor Award in 1995, Catherine, Called Birdy is the story of a thirteen, going on fourteen year-old girl living in the thirteenth, going on fourteenth century. Written in diary format, Catherine reveals the eccentricities of her historical period, (such as potentially being married off to an older man at her very young age,) but ultimately portrays the relatable struggle of a young girl growing up, a topic particularly close to Dunham’s heart. During the panel she commented, “it’s hyper realistic and really pretty and it’s full of incest and beatings, but it’s a child’s story. I’ve been obsessed with it since I was a kid.”
On top of her nationwide book tour for her recent publication Not that Kind of Girl, as well as the upcoming fourth season for her hit Emmy-winning series Girls, Dunham will be developing this film adaptation with her and her partner Jenni Konner’s fledgling production company, A Casual Romance. This will be the first of several projects for the company, which will all essentially deal with the female voice in varying times and space, or as Dunham puts it, “sort of not set in the here and now.” With these films in the woodwork, Dunham is set to lead the “Girl” market into the future, all she needs is to “find someone who wants to fund a PG-13 medieval movie.”
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