Alex Karpovsky
Although Alex Karpovsky was a multi-hyphenate, writing, directing and producing in addition to acting, his big breakthrough came with an acting role in the series "Girls" (HBO 2012-). Karpovsky was raised in the Boston suburb of Newton, MA in the 1980s, growing up in an academic environment that led him to study at the University of Oxford when he was older, majoring in visual ethnography with the intention of becoming a professor. That dream faded, though, as he began to gravitate towards film, while also dabbling in stand-up comedy. His writing and directing debut, "The Hole Story" (2005), was an award-winning indie sensation that he also starred in as an exaggerated version of himself. He followed it up with the docufiction comedy "Woodpecker" (2008), though it didn't garner as much acclaim as his debut. Over the next few years, Karpovsky appeared in a variety of indie movies, including his friend Lena Dunham's acclaimed "Tiny Furniture" (2010). During that same time, he also put directed a documentary called "Trust Us, This Is All Made Up" about a pair of Second City improv legends, T.J. Jagodowski and David Pasquesi. His work with Dunham led him to the more mainstream TV world as he co-starred in her series "Girls" (HBO 2012 -) as Ray Polshansky, a character that sometimes drew inspiration from Karpovksy's own life. During the first season of "Girls," Karpovsky also wrote, directed, and starred in two films, "Rubberneck" (2012) and "Red Flag" (2012), which ended up being released on the same day. Karpovsky next flirted with mainstream notice with a small but memorable role in a dinner party scene in the Coen brothers' Greenwich Village period piece "Inside Llewyn Davis" (2013).