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Rachel Sennott joins the online meeting and right away begins an explanation. “Apologies for the delay!” she states, appearing really regretful. She is only slightly behind, she needs to explain. “My phone conversations always run long.” “Previous discussions went over, and I realized I talk too much!” Thankfully, in this context, this is exactly what you want to experience. Additionally, it’s pretty expected. Viewers who have seen her fearlessly queer and unapologetically crass film Bottoms—that Sennott collaborated on with the director and starred in together with collaborator the talented actress—would already know that she possesses a lot to share, whether on identity, intimacy, or the merits of creating a youth combat group. And, once you finish the latest eight-part program titled I Love LA, it is clear that the star holds even more thoughts about the struggles of Gen Z life (Now in her thirties, Sennott is an honorary member to younger audiences, on the cusp adept for connecting both generations).

Influences and Storytelling Approach

Parallels to Lena Dunham’s Girls are inevitable and Sennott admits to being a fan, citing the show together with Sex and the City, the acclaimed comedy and Donald Glover’s series as guides for I Love LA, which tracks the travails of a social media star Tallulah and close companion and new talent manager Sennott’s character. Notably, the biggest influence on creative vision belonged to the popular sitcom, that HBO sitcom depicting a rising Hollywood star navigating in a corrupt Hollywood (choice quote: “only the unsuccessful find joy here”). Sennott discovered it amid the pandemic, became “captivated”, and chose to create a new version on it “targeting women and LGBTQ+ viewers”.

“I sought to highlight online platforms as the new industry, since my professional journey launched there,” she says. The idea for the series originated—in part—from firsthand, initially difficult, relocation to Los Angeles and from the saturn return, a popular phenomenon for enthusiasts. It was an era that saw her understand significant insights, professionally 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.” It was almost like these biblical tests …”

Early Beginnings

Growing up in Connecticut, Sennott commenced writing and performing humor while studying acting at NYU’s Tisch. “I went through all the proper channels to try to perform, and they weren’t gelling,” she explains. “Auditions for university comedy troupes led to universal rejection. “Theatre productions at school also didn’t accept me. And I just felt like, what am I doing here?”

Sennott took matters into her own hands, appearing at open mics with Ayo and sharing hilarious (and distinctly) unconventional skits on the internet. One, titled Baby Cult, centered on characters obsessively drawn to motherhood; a different one imagined working at a trendy retail outlet as like being stuck in a horror film. By chance, she connected with Seligman through NYU’s movie community and ended up featuring in her first film, Shiva Baby, an anxious dramedy set at a religious event with echoes of the intense thriller. A recurring idea of her path, she explains, has been people her own age giving her a shot, as opposed to established gatekeepers. Does that mean bypassing the usual powers? “They were not involved”, she confirms, stating amusedly: “They don’t want us to win.”

Career Breakthrough

Individuals who had doubts regarding her previously will surely be feeling foolish now. In what she labels a “incredibly circular” turn of events, she has achieved the perfect project. Previously she posted a video titled “it’s LA” 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 her partner) of a comedy about LA residents juggling benefits of online celebrity (such as partying at a famous actor’s house) with downsides (your client being suspected of being a substance-abusing thief, and perhaps becoming a “brand unsafe” pariah). It would be easy to create a series about online fame that was horribly idealized—or, worse, one that punched down at the characters. I Love LA does neither, making for a depiction of advantaged twentysomething life that’s candid about the chaos and the shine.

Empathetic Approach

“There have been a lot of shows that depict young people and their relationship to the internet in this very condescending, hateful way,” 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