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Rachel Sennott appears on the digital interview and right away launches into an apology. “Apologies for the delay!” she states, appearing really remorseful. Although she's only a bit late, she wants to explain. “My phone conversations always run long.” “Previous discussions went over, and I realized I talk too much!” Luckily, in this context, this is precisely what is ideal to experience. Moreover, it’s quite unsurprising. Those familiar with her boldly LGBTQ+ and unapologetically crass project Bottoms—which she collaborated on with her creative partner and appeared in alongside close companion the talented actress—will already know that she has much to share, whether on roles, intimacy, or the appeal of creating a youth fight club. Plus, after watching her recent multi-episode program titled I Love LA, viewers realize that she carries additional perspectives on the darker side of young adulthood (At 30, she is a bridge for this generation, a tale-end millennial with a knack for connecting millennials and Gen Z).

Guiding Lights and Storytelling Approach

Parallels to the iconic series Girls are inevitable and Sennott readily acknowledges a fan, naming the show together with Sex and the City, Insecure and the innovative program as inspirations for the project, which tracks the struggles of a social media star Tallulah and her friend and aspiring representative Maia. Notably, the largest spot on the moodboard belonged to the HBO series, the show focusing on a rising Hollywood star making his way in an often-seedy LA scene (notable statement: “only the unsuccessful find joy here”). Sennott discovered it during COVID-19, became “captivated”, and decided to put her own twist 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 emerged—in part—from firsthand, at first fractious, relocation to Tinseltown and from her astrological phase, a frequently discussed event for followers. That period marked a time that included her learn significant life lessons, work-wise and individually. “In my early 20s I was so messy, crying in public everywhere, all the time,” she recalls. “After relocating to Los Angeles in my mid-twenties, I found stability, only for things to crumble. It was almost like these biblical tests …”

Humble Origins

Raised in New England, Sennott began creating and acting 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 states. “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 took matters into her own hands, performing at open mics with Ayo and uploading hilarious (and very) bizarre online content on the internet. One, titled Baby Cult, followed a group of women intensely obsessed with having babies; a different one imagined being employed at a trendy retail outlet as similar to being stuck in a scary movie. By chance, she encountered Emma through campus film circles and eventually appearing in her initial project, titled Shiva Baby, a stressful film set at a religious event with shades of the Safdie brothers’ movie. A recurring idea of her journey, she explains, has been peers giving her a shot, as opposed to traditional networks. So, not the gatekeepers, then? “They were not involved”, she repeats, adding with a laugh: “Our victory isn’t their goal.”

Rising Success

Anyone who had doubts regarding Sennott earlier will likely be feeling foolish now. In what she describes as a “wild, full-circle” story, she has achieved her dream vehicle. A few years back she uploaded a clip named “it’s LA” on social media, in which she lampooned Hollywood trailers (“Substance abuse is rampant here”). Six years on, she’s executive producer (with the co-writer) of a show about city dwellers managing the perks of online celebrity (such as partying at Elijah Wood’s house) with its pitfalls (your associate being suspected of being a drug-addled stealer, and perhaps becoming a “brand unsafe” persona non grata). Some could easy to create a show about digital influence that was extremely glamorous—or, even less favorable, one that mocked at the characters. I Love LA steers clear of each, creating a representation of affluent young adult living that’s frank about the mess and the appeal.

Nuanced Portrayal

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