As SXSW 2009 approaches we’ll be asking filmmakers to spill the superficial details about their films, to tell us all the deep personal details of what makes them tick, and –– new this year! –– reveal who they had to sleep with, in the incestuous conspiracy-minded secret society that is the wider SXSW community, in order to get their film programmed at the festival.

Today we take a look at Creative Nonfiction, an Emerging Visions entry from Lena Dunham, who you might remember from Brandon’s Media Diet interview back in January, which was pegged to the debut of her very funny and still ongoing web series, Delusional Downtown Divas. Answering The 5 Questions We Ask Everyone, Lena tells us about what 9 year old kids won’t let her get away with, and uses the phrase “boning Mark Ruffalo,” for which she has instantly won our hearts. The Nonfiction trailer is embedded above.

Tell us about your movie. Who did you work with, why did you make it? Give us the reductive, 25-word or less, “It’s like [pop culture reference a] meets [pop culture reference b]!” pitch, then explain what the quick and dirty sell leaves out.

I wrote it when I was a sophomore in college, filmed it when I was a junior and senior, and now I’m in my first post-collegiate year and I’m ready/able to share it. It was made with friends for a small sum, produced by my mother.

It’s like In Between Days had a baby with Kicking and Screaming (the Noah Baumbach, not the Will Ferrell.) This leaves out the fact that it’s sixty minutes, has John Waters-inspired fantasy sequences, is made on a mix of mini-dv (shot by my friend Hannah Lesser) and super 16mm (shot by Brett Jutkiwicz of Red Bucket Films). Almost entirely non-actors hanging out in 100 percent-real dorm rooms in scenic Ohio. It’s a (hopefully) universal story about fumbling sex attempts, pseudo-heartbreak, trying to connect physically and emotionally at that odd time when you’re old enough to want to but too young to know how.

Do you have a day job/a non-filmmaking occupation that raises money for your filmmaking efforts? Tell us about it.

I have a few! I work at a children’s clothing store. I babysit. I write articles here and there. I used to be a hostess in a fancy restaurant but I was just awful at it — think constant text messaging under the host stand. Nine year-old kids don’t let you get away with that kind of thing, though, so it’s not a problem anymore.

I graduated from college in May of 2008, so I’m just getting the hang of life in the work force.

Have you been to SXSW before? If so, tell us about your funniest story from the experience. If not, what are you looking forward to re: the festival and/or the city of Austin?

I have never been to SXSW or to Austin! But I’ve always had a fantasy that Austin is my escape route from NYC– I think all New Yorkers have a town they fantasize about as their destination if this city becomes too abusive, and Austin is mine. Unsullied by any real experience. So I want to get a sense of the place. A girl I know from college has an underpants store I want to check out. But I’m most excited to see the maddeningly exciting roster of films, especially the ones in my section (Emerging Visions). I write for /Hammer To Nail, so I’m also hoping to get a bit of fodder for rave reviews.

Let’s get hypothetical: You’re on death row. The night of your execution, you’re allowed to watch any two films of your choice. What would you pick for your last-night-on-Earth double feature?

In truth, knowing that only God can judge me now, I’d probably choose something really embarrassing and trashy. But I’d like to believe I’d watch Ali: Fear Eats the Soul and then follow it up with a smart chick flick like Walking and Talking.

I might also be in the mood for a real teary pity party and replace the Holofcener with My Life Without Me with Sarah Polley — about a girl who knows she’s terminally ill but keeps it to herself and pursues her long-dormant dreams, like getting fake nails and boning Mark Ruffalo.

This question is hard.

There’s been some criticism that the only way to get into SXSW is by being a part of an “incestuous scene where everybody knows everybody.” So who did *you* have to sleep with to get in? (Metaphorically or literally: are there any SXSW filmmaker(s) past or present that you’re close with personally and/or professionally, and how have those relationships helped or hurt the process of producing your film and getting it seen?)

I have a lot of friends/acquaintances who have brought films to SXSW. Some I’ve worked with– the Red Bucket Films guys [of The Pleasure of Being Robbed fame] were instrumental in the making of Creative Nonfiction. Other are just people who I’ve met during my few years making movies (usually, if I like something and the person who made it seems vaguely accessible, I pounce via cyberspace.)

But I did submit my movie the good old fashioned way, entry fee and and all. It was actually my 2nd year submitting. (I previously gave a hasty rough cut, something I don’t advise doing because it’s just an awful, raw sensation.) I feel very lucky to be included and I certainly didn’t consider it a given based on any friendships. That being said, I’m glad a festival like SXSW supports so much work I admire, made by people I care about.