When Lena Dunham read the script for “The Treasure” by Julia von Heinz for the first time, it was immediately clear to her.
The “Girls” creator's grandmother had just died at age 96, and Dunham was thinking a lot about her heritage. “Treasure,” based on the 1999 novel “Too Many Men” by Lily Brett, follows Ruth (Dunham), a journalist who travels to Poland with her Holocaust survivor father (Stephen Fry) to investigate the to come to terms with her family's tragic past. Not only did Dunham agree to star in the film, but her production company Good Thing Going also signed on.
Both Dunham and her producing partner, Michael P. Cohen, are Jewish and found the story “incredibly resonant for both of our families,” Dunham tells Variety at the Berlin Film Festival, where “Treasure” premieres Saturday evening.
“We both looked at each other after reading the script and said, 'This is something we will be proud to tell our children.' “It’s something we would be proud to tell our grandparents,” Dunham says. “Michael's grandmother has already seen it and I think, 'If Nan liked it, that's enough for me.' She gave a glowing texting review and I asked, 'Nan can text?'”
“'Girl' might not have been for Nan,” Cohen interjects as Dunham laughs.
“It was interesting because my grandmother was at the premiere of the first season of 'Girls,' and I don't think she liked it,” Dunham remembers. “I think she was excited because she thought, 'Wow, Lena gets to wear so many beautiful dresses.' But I loved thinking that [‘Treasure’] would be one that she [would enjoy] … It was very special and emotional to show it to the members of my family who are still there.”
Below, Dunham discusses the relevance of “Treasure,” the recent “Girls” renaissance and what to expect from her new Netflix show.
Tell me about working with Fry. How did you form this father-daughter bond?
When I sent my mom the first picture of us together in costume, she said, “Oh my God, I feel like now we know who your real dad is.” And he happens to be a gay cultural icon from another country. But who knows, it can happen!
To be honest, we didn't have much time to prepare together. Stephen was studying Polish, which was intensive, and I was in the writers' room for the show I'm currently on. So we met once and then went to Poland. But I think there was something about being the two native English speakers on that set – we just pushed each other. We basically talked from morning to night every day. There were even moments where he said, “You have to put the phone down” and got annoyed with me like a father would. But there is also an incredible bond between two Jewish people who visit these places. Our first day together was at the largest Jewish cemetery in the world in Poland, where the graves of many non-survivors and the family members of the survivors are located. And then each place we visited held more keys to parts of our identity we didn't understand. And so this experience connects you very quickly.
Were you in Poland before filming “Treasure”?
I went to Poland once during my studies and it was more of a trip to drink alcohol with guys than a trip to find my identity. And actually, I didn't even know it at that point – my grandmother had always said that we were Hungarians, even though the only surviving member of our family had actually moved to Hungary. Our whole family, including my great-grandmother, is from Poland, actually about 15 miles from where we were filming. So on this trip it had a whole new resonance – and on this trip too, I was a sober, working adult who was interested in processing these experiences.
It cannot be emphasized enough how impressive it is to go to Auschwitz in particular, to experience the place and to understand that there is even one city where people live around this story. We think of it as a terrible relic, when in fact there is a terrible relic surrounded by people who continue to live their lives. I think a really important film that came out this year is The Zone of Interest – they were shot less than four miles from where we were and we had a lot of the same crew members. It was really fascinating for me to watch that and understand that in addition to all the things that were happening to Stephen's character, there was also this other reality of people just living and ignoring. It has a lesson to teach us: we must not continue to turn our heads away when we see wrongdoing. We must remain vigilant and preserve our humanity.
Stephen Fry and Lena Dunham in Treasure.
Whether intentional or not, it is certainly a very timely film in terms of the current conflict in the Middle East. What do you hope people take away from it?
This is a strange thing because Julia has been trying to make this film for over a decade. But I hope that it can force us to look back on this terrible event in a profound way that continues our mission to never let anything like this happen again – to the Jewish people or to anyone else. Something I love about storytelling is that when you learn a person's story, trauma, and truth, it's impossible not to empathize with them. The same goes when they say that a large percentage of Americans believe they don't know a trans person, but once they do, their perception of it might change. And so I hope that this is a film that reaches people who may have a distorted idea of what it means to be a Jewish person, and I also hope that it has a message of really, really strong opposition to any Forms of racism, xenophobia, etc. promote hate.
I have to ask you about your upcoming Netflix series “Too Much,” starring Megan Stalter and Will Sharpe. As someone who moved to London from the US after a breakup, just like the show's plot, I couldn't be more excited. What can fans expect?
They are our target group in the truest sense of the word. We are aimed at the girls who have been through a breakup. We shot for three weeks and it was an incredible experience. I mean, Megan Stalter is a joy and a pleasure and Will Sharpe is an absolute genius and we've put together a fantastic cast that we'll be announcing soon. I'm sure you've had the experience that English people and Americans speak the same language and yet there are so many completely strange gaps in the way we identify. And besides, I just love it when a woman in crisis gets what she deserves in a good way. And that's what we want to achieve with this show. I'm also talking about this time in the world and trying to make something that's loving and joyful and hopefully still sharp and succinct, and all the naughty scenes that people are used to from me, but with some sort of underlying, underpinned message of love and hope.
It feels like everyone has re-watched “Girls” this year. What does it mean to you that people still love the show?
It's crazy and wild and not something I expected. The cast and I share it when someone sends us a funny meme. I'll be 38 in May; I started writing this series when I was 23 years old. I thought, “If I do a pilot, wow, what a life experience.” The fact that there's anyone – I mean, people are still watching a show that came out before Instagram was invented?! What the hell? To everyone leading the revival: I see your TikTok mashups. I'm grateful for them, even though I'm technically incompetent and don't really use Instagram. I get the love and it is deeply felt and appreciated.
Did you see the clip of Marnie (Allison Williams) singing “Fast Car” last season resurface after Tracy Chapman's Grammys performance?
I love that while we were filming Girls, Allison kept saying, “Oh my God, are you really going to let me sing that?” That's so embarrassing.” And I would say, “It won't be a big deal. ” And then these are the things that become memes for the next 20 years. I'm sorry, Allison.
Like Marnie's performance of Kanye West's “Stronger.”
I will credit her for some of the lyrical changes in this. We are very grateful to Allison.
This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.