Rachel Sennott on her hilarious show depicting that chaotic glamour of today's youth life
The star enters the digital interview and at once begins an explanation. “I can’t believe I’m late!” she says, appearing genuinely apologetic. Although she's only a bit late, she needs to justify. “My phone conversations always run long.” “Previous discussions went over, and I realized I talk too much!” Fortunately, in this context, that’s precisely what one hopes to experience. Additionally, it’s fairly expected. Anyone who know her fearlessly openly gay and outspoken movie titled Bottoms—which Sennott penned with her creative partner and featured in together with her friend the talented actress—will already know that she holds much to share, whether about identity, relationships, or the pros of creating a teen brawl society. And, after watching the latest multi-episode show I Love LA, it becomes obvious that she carries further insights about the struggles of modern youth (At 30, she represents a bridge to younger audiences, a tale-end millennial skilled for straddling both generations).
Inspirations and Storytelling Approach
The comparisons to Lena Dunham’s Girls are inevitable and Sennott readily acknowledges a fan, referencing it together with the HBO hit, Insecure and the innovative program as guides for her series, which details the struggles of a social media star Tallulah and ally and aspiring talent manager portrayed by Sennott. However, the most significant influence on the moodboard went to Entourage, the HBO sitcom depicting an emerging celebrity navigating in a gritty LA scene (memorable line: “nobody’s happy in this town except for the losers”). She discovered it during lockdown, became “hooked”, and chose to add a fresh perspective on it “with female and queer audiences in mind”.
“My aim was to focus on digital fame over traditional entertainment, as my own beginnings were on the web,” she explains. The inspiration for this project originated—to some extent—from her own, at first fractious, relocation to Tinseltown and from the astrological phase, a much-talked-about occurrence for astrology heads. This represented a time that involved her learn major truths, in her career and personally. “During my younger years, I was chaotic, often breaking down in public,” she recalls. “Settling in LA during my mid-twenties brought calm, but soon everything unraveled.” “It resembled a series of extreme challenges…”
Starting Out
Raised in the East Coast, Sennott started writing and performing stand-up 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. “I tried out for all the NYU comedy groups, and got rejected from all of them. 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.”
Sennott seized control, appearing at live shows with Ayo and posting hysterical (and distinctly) bizarre comedy videos on the internet. One, Baby Cult, centered on a group of women obsessively fixated on pregnancy; a different one imagined working at the brand Hollister as like being trapped in a thriller. Interestingly, she met Emma through NYU’s movie community and ended up featuring in her directorial debut, Shiva Baby, a tense comedy set at a funeral gathering with shades of the intense thriller. The central motif of her path, she says, has been peers offering opportunities, as opposed to the industry at large. Does that mean bypassing the usual powers? “Definitely not them”, she confirms, continuing humorously: “Our victory isn’t their goal.”
Career Breakthrough
Anyone who had doubts about Sennott earlier will surely be feeling foolish now. In what she labels a “wild, full-circle” story, she appears to achieved her dream vehicle. A few years back she posted a clip named “it’s LA” online, in which she mocked film promos (“Everyone’s hooked on something”). Six years on, she’s a lead creator (with the co-writer) of a series about city dwellers juggling the perks of online celebrity (such as celebrating at a celebrity’s house) with drawbacks (your client being labeled as being a drug-addled thief, and possibly becoming a unreliable persona non grata). One might tempting to create a program about online fame that was horribly idealized—or, worse, one that belittled at those depicted. The series avoids both, resulting in a portrait of affluent young adult existence that’s frank about the mess and the glamour.
Nuanced Portrayal
“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