Rachel Sennott discussing the side-splitting show depicting that chaotic glamour of today's youth life
The performer joins the video call and right away launches into an excuse. “I can’t believe I’m late!” she says, sounding genuinely remorseful. Despite being only slightly late, she wants to justify. “My phone conversations always run long.” “Previous discussions went over, and I realized I talk too much!” Luckily, during an interview, this is precisely what you want to experience. Additionally, it’s fairly unsurprising. Anyone who know her unapologetically queer and unapologetically crass movie Bottoms—which she collaborated on with her creative partner and starred in together with her friend the talented actress—will understand that she holds plenty to discuss, ranging from about roles, intimacy, or the appeal of starting a high-school combat group. Furthermore, by the end the latest multi-episode show I Love LA, it becomes obvious that the star carries further perspectives regarding the struggles of modern youth (As a millennial, she is a bridge for this generation, on the cusp skilled for bridging millennials and Gen Z).
Influences and Creative Vision
Parallels to Lena Dunham’s groundbreaking show can’t be avoided and Sennott is enthusiastic, referencing the show alongside Sex and the City, Insecure and the innovative program as influences for the project, which follows the travails of online personality played by Odessa A’Zion and close companion and aspiring representative Sennott’s character. Perhaps, the largest presence on the moodboard was reserved for the HBO series, the HBO sitcom focusing on a rising celebrity succeeding in a gritty entertainment industry (notable statement: “only the unsuccessful find joy here”). She started watching it during the pandemic, became “obsessed”, and decided to create a new version on it “with female and queer audiences in mind”.
“I wanted to make a show where the internet, not Hollywood, was the industry, because my career started online,” she notes. The concept for I Love LA emerged—in part—from firsthand, initially rocky, move to LA and from her saturn return, a frequently discussed occurrence for enthusiasts. This represented a time that included her understand major insights, in her career and individually. “In my early 20s I was so messy, crying in public everywhere, all the time,” she recalls. “In my mid-20s, I moved to LA and got settled. And then I felt like everything started to just fall apart. It was almost like these biblical tests …”
Humble Origins
Growing up in the East Coast, the star commenced creating and acting stand-up while enrolled in acting at a prestigious arts school. “Despite trying every conventional route, I couldn’t find my footing,” she says. “I tried out for all the NYU comedy groups, and got rejected from all of them. “None of the university plays cast me either.” And I just felt like, what am I doing here?”
She took matters into her own hands, performing at live shows with her friend and posting uproarious (and very) unconventional comedy videos online. One, titled Baby Cult, followed several females obsessively drawn to having babies; another envisioned being employed at a trendy retail outlet as similar to being caught in a thriller. In a neat twist of fate, she met Seligman through campus film circles and ultimately featuring in her directorial debut, Shiva Baby, a tense dramedy set at a religious event with echoes of the intense thriller. A recurring idea of her journey, she explains, has been peers offering opportunities, as opposed to established gatekeepers. Does that mean bypassing the usual powers? “Not the gatekeepers”, she repeats, continuing amusedly: “They don’t want us to win.”
Rising Success
Those who had doubts about Sennott earlier will surely be regretting it today. In what she calls a “astonishingly complete” development, she has created the perfect project. In 2019 she uploaded content titled about Los Angeles online, in which she mocked movie previews (“I’m addicted to drugs – we all are”). Now, she’s executive producer (with Emma Barrie) of a comedy about city dwellers balancing the perks of digital stardom (such as socializing at a famous actor’s house) with drawbacks (your associate being labeled as being a intoxicated stealer, and potentially becoming a unreliable pariah). It would be simple to create a series about online fame that was overly idealized—or, more problematic, one that belittled at its subjects. I Love LA avoids both, creating a depiction of privileged twentysomething existence that’s frank about the mess and the glamour.
Balanced Perspective
“Many programs portray youth and online life with disdain and mockery,” she comments. “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