🔗 Share this article

Rachel Sennott joins the digital interview and immediately begins an apology. “I can’t believe I’m late!” she states, seeming really regretful. Despite being only slightly behind, she feels compelled to clarify. “I tend to talk too much during calls. “Previous discussions went over, and I realized I talk too much!” Fortunately, for a writer, this is precisely what you want to hear. Besides, it’s pretty expected. Those who have seen her boldly LGBTQ+ and outspoken film Bottoms—which Sennott penned with her creative partner and starred in with collaborator the talented actress—would be aware that Sennott holds plenty to discuss, ranging from on gender, sex, or the merits of starting a teen fight club. Plus, by the end her latest multi-episode HBO series I Love LA, viewers realize that she carries further perspectives regarding the struggles of modern youth (As a millennial, Sennott represents a relatable figure of the gang, straddling eras skilled for bridging different age groups).

Influences and Artistic Direction

Parallels to Lena Dunham’s Girls naturally arise and Sennott is enthusiastic, referencing it alongside Sex and the City, the acclaimed comedy and the innovative program as influences for I Love LA, which details the struggles of a social media star Tallulah and close companion and aspiring representative Sennott’s character. Perhaps, the biggest influence on creative vision was reserved for Entourage, that program about an up-and-coming Hollywood star navigating in a corrupt Hollywood (notable statement: “happiness eludes everyone but failures in this city”). She discovered it during COVID-19, became “hooked”, 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 explains. The idea for I Love LA originated—partly—from personal, at first rocky, relocation to Tinseltown and from the cosmic event, a much-talked-about event for followers. This represented a phase that saw her grasp major life lessons, in her career and individually. “My twenties began with constant public emotional outbursts and disorganization,” she admits. “Settling in LA during my mid-twenties brought calm, but soon everything unraveled.” “The struggles felt almost mythic in scale…”

Starting Out

Brought up in New England, Sennott started developing and showcasing comedy while enrolled in theatre at a prestigious arts school. “I followed traditional paths to get on stage, but nothing clicked,” she says. “Auditions for university comedy troupes led to universal rejection. I tried out for all the NYU plays and didn’t make it into any of them. “It left me questioning my purpose and place.”

She decided to act independently, performing at open mics with Edebiri and sharing hysterical (and distinctly) unconventional online content online. One, titled Baby Cult, centered on several females fetishistically fixated on having babies; another imagined being employed at the brand Hollister as akin to being stuck in a scary movie. Interestingly, she connected with Seligman through the university’s film scene and ended up starring in her directorial debut, Shiva Baby, an anxious film set at a funeral gathering with echoes of the intense thriller. A recurring idea of her path, she notes, has been people her own age offering opportunities, rather than established gatekeepers. So, not the gatekeepers, then? “Definitely not them”, she emphasizes, stating with a laugh: “They prefer we don’t succeed.”

Manifesting Dreams

Individuals who had doubts regarding her previously will surely be regretting it now. Through she calls a “astonishingly complete” story, she seems to have created the perfect project. Previously she shared a video called on LA life on the internet, in which she mocked movie previews (“Substance abuse is rampant here”). Years later, she’s a lead creator (with Emma Barrie) of a series about Angelenos balancing benefits of internet fame (such as partying at Elijah Wood’s house) with downsides (your associate being suspected of being a substance-abusing criminal, and perhaps becoming a “brand unsafe” outcast). It would be tempting to create a series about digital influence that was extremely glamorous—or, more problematic, one that mocked at its subjects. This show steers clear of each, making for a depiction of affluent twentysomething existence that’s candid about the mess and the glamour.

Balanced Perspective

“Numerous series present younger generations and digital culture in a derogatory manner,” 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