Rachel Sennott joins the video call and right away launches into an explanation. “Apologies for the delay!” she states, appearing really remorseful. Although she's only slightly late, she needs to justify. “I tend to talk too much during calls. I had two calls before this, and I’m like, I’ve gotta stop talking!” Luckily, during an interview, that’s precisely what is ideal to hear. Moreover, it’s pretty expected. Viewers who know her unapologetically LGBTQ+ and unapologetically crass movie Bottoms—which Sennott collaborated on with her creative partner and appeared in with her friend the talented actress—will already know that Sennott has plenty to say, whether about gender, intimacy, or the merits of forming a high-school brawl society. And, after watching her new eight-part show titled I Love LA, it becomes obvious that she carries further perspectives regarding the struggles of modern youth (Now in her thirties, Sennott is an honorary member to younger audiences, a tale-end millennial adept for connecting millennials and Gen Z).
Inspirations and Creative Vision
The comparisons to Lena Dunham’s groundbreaking show can’t be avoided and Sennott readily acknowledges enthusiastic, referencing the show alongside the HBO hit, Insecure and Atlanta as guides for I Love LA, which follows the journey of a social media star played by Odessa A’Zion and close companion and new representative portrayed by Sennott. Perhaps, the biggest spot on creative vision was reserved for the HBO series, the program focusing on an emerging Hollywood star navigating in a corrupt Hollywood (choice quote: “nobody’s happy in this town except for the losers”). She discovered it during lockdown, became “captivated”, and chose to create a new version on it “with female and queer audiences in mind”.
“I sought to highlight online platforms as the new industry, since my professional journey launched there,” she notes. The concept for this project originated—partly—from firsthand, originally rocky, relocation to LA and from her astrological phase, a popular occurrence for enthusiasts. It was an era that included her grasp major life lessons, work-wise and in private life. “My twenties began with constant public emotional outbursts and disorganization,” she recalls. “Settling in LA during my mid-twenties brought calm, but soon everything unraveled.” “The struggles felt almost mythic in scale…”
Humble Origins
Growing up in Connecticut, the star commenced writing and performing stand-up while studying performance at NYU’s Tisch. “I went through all the proper channels to try to perform, and they weren’t gelling,” she states. “I tried out for all the NYU comedy groups, and got rejected from all of them. “Theatre productions at school also didn’t accept me. “I wondered why I was even there at all.”
Sennott decided to act independently, taking the stage at live shows with her friend and sharing hilarious (and decidedly) weird online content digitally. A particular video, Baby Cult, followed several females intensely drawn to pregnancy; another imagined working at the brand Hollister as similar to being caught in a horror film. In a neat twist of fate, she encountered Emma through campus film circles and ultimately appearing in her initial project, Shiva Baby, a tense film set at a Jewish wake with hints of the Safdie brothers’ movie. The big theme of her career, she says, has been contemporaries giving her a shot, instead of traditional networks. So, not the gatekeepers, then? “Definitely not them”, she repeats, adding humorously: “Our victory isn’t their goal.”
Manifesting Dreams
Individuals who were skeptical regarding Sennott then will likely be regretting it today. Through she labels a “astonishingly complete” story, she appears to achieved the perfect project. A few years back she uploaded a video titled on LA life on social media, in which she parodied movie previews (“I’m addicted to drugs – we all are”). Six years on, she’s a lead creator (with Emma Barrie) of a series about LA residents balancing advantages of internet fame (such as celebrating at Elijah Wood’s house) with its pitfalls (your client being accused of being a substance-abusing stealer, and perhaps becoming a unreliable persona non grata). Some could tempting to produce a program about internet celebrity that was horribly idealized—or, even less favorable, one that belittled at its subjects. This show does neither, creating a representation of advantaged twentysomething life that’s frank about the grot and the shine.
Nuanced Portrayal
“Many programs portray youth and online life with disdain and mockery,” she says. “I think that young people have been through a lot – I’m mostly thinking of people younger than me, like my little sister, who went to college during Covid, so she had to come home, or my other sister who was doing school online.”|“The younger generation has faced significant
