Rachel Sennott enters the online meeting and immediately launches into an apology. “Oh my God – I’m sorry!” she states, sounding really apologetic. Although she's only a bit behind, she feels compelled to explain. “I tend to talk too much during calls. I had two calls before this, and I’m like, I’ve gotta stop talking!” Thankfully, during an interview, this is precisely what you want to hear. Additionally, it’s fairly predictable. Viewers who know the fearlessly queer and brash project Bottoms—which Sennott penned with Emma Seligman and appeared in alongside collaborator the talented actress—will be aware that she possesses a lot to say, ranging from on identity, relationships, or the merits of starting a youth brawl society. And, by the end the latest eight-part program I Love LA, it is clear that she holds further thoughts regarding the struggles of young adulthood (Now in her thirties, Sennott is an honorary member to younger audiences, straddling eras adept for bridging millennials and Gen Z).
Inspirations and Artistic Direction
Parallels to Lena Dunham’s groundbreaking show naturally arise and the actress readily acknowledges an admirer, naming the show together with the HBO hit, Issa Rae’s show and the innovative program as influences for the project, which tracks the struggles of a social media star played by Odessa A’Zion and close companion who is also new representative Maia. Perhaps, the largest influence on creative vision belonged to the HBO series, the program about a rising Hollywood star succeeding in an often-seedy Hollywood (memorable line: “happiness eludes everyone but failures in this city”). Sennott started watching it throughout COVID-19, 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 says. The idea for this project emerged—partly—from her own, originally fractious, relocation to LA and from her saturn return, a popular occurrence for astrology heads. It was a time that included her understand some big life lessons, work-wise and personally. “In my early 20s I was so messy, crying in public everywhere, all the time,” she admits. “After relocating to Los Angeles in my mid-twenties, I found stability, only for things to crumble. It was almost like these biblical tests …”
Starting Out
Raised in New England, Sennott commenced developing and showcasing comedy while studying performance at New York University (NYU) Tisch School of the Arts. “Despite trying every conventional route, I couldn’t find my footing,” she says. “Every campus humor group turned me down after tryouts.” “None of the university plays cast me either.” “It left me questioning my purpose and place.”
She decided to act independently, performing at amateur nights with Ayo and sharing hilarious (and very) bizarre skits on the internet. One, Baby Cult, depicted a group of women fetishistically fixated on pregnancy; another portrayed being employed at the preppy clothing store Hollister as akin to being stuck in a thriller. By chance, she connected with Seligman through NYU’s movie community and eventually appearing in her directorial debut, titled Shiva Baby, a stressful dramedy set at a Jewish wake with hints of the Safdie brothers’ movie. The big theme of her journey, she explains, has been contemporaries giving her a shot, rather than the industry at large. Does that mean bypassing the usual powers? “Not the gatekeepers”, she confirms, adding amusedly: “Our victory isn’t their goal.”
Career Breakthrough
Individuals who were skeptical regarding Sennott then will surely be kicking themselves currently. As part of she describes as a “incredibly circular” story, she seems to have achieved the perfect project. In 2019 she posted a video called on LA life online, in which she lampooned Hollywood trailers (“I’m addicted to drugs – we all are”). Years later, she’s the co-showrunner (with her partner) of a show about city dwellers managing benefits of internet fame (such as partying at a famous actor’s house) with downsides (your associate being labeled as being a substance-abusing criminal, and perhaps becoming a “brand unsafe” pariah). Some could simple to produce a series about digital influence that was overly glamorous—or, even less favorable, one that mocked at its subjects. I Love LA does neither, creating a depiction of privileged young adult existence that’s frank about the grot and the appeal.
Empathetic Approach
“Many programs portray youth and online life with disdain and mockery,” she observes. “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
