The star enters the online meeting and at once starts an explanation. “Apologies for the delay!” she says, sounding really regretful. She is only a bit behind, she needs to explain. “My phone conversations always run long.” I had two calls before this, and I’m like, I’ve gotta stop talking!” Luckily, during an interview, this is precisely what one hopes to experience. Besides, it’s pretty expected. Anyone who know her unapologetically LGBTQ+ and brash film Bottoms—that Sennott co-wrote with the director and featured in together with her friend the talented actress—will understand that she has plenty to discuss, ranging from on roles, sex, or the pros of creating a high-school combat group. And, after watching the latest eight-part program I Love LA, it is clear that the star carries further perspectives regarding the struggles of young adulthood (Now in her thirties, she serves as a relatable figure for this generation, on the cusp with a knack for connecting millennials and Gen Z).
Guiding Lights and Storytelling Approach
Likenesses to Lena Dunham’s Girls naturally arise and the actress admits to being a fan, naming the show alongside the classic series, the acclaimed comedy and the innovative program as influences for the project, which details the journey of an influencer played by Odessa A’Zion and her friend and aspiring representative Sennott’s character. However, the most significant presence on concept went to the popular sitcom, that show focusing on an up-and-coming celebrity succeeding in a corrupt entertainment industry (choice quote: “happiness eludes everyone but failures in this city”). Sennott began viewing it throughout the pandemic, became “obsessed”, and chose to put her own twist 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 inspiration for the series originated—partly—from firsthand, initially difficult, move to Tinseltown and from her astrological phase, a much-talked-about occurrence for enthusiasts. That period marked a time that included her grasp significant insights, professionally and personally. “In my early 20s I was so messy, crying in public everywhere, all the time,” she admits. “Settling in LA during my mid-twenties brought calm, but soon everything unraveled.” “The struggles felt almost mythic in scale…”
Humble Origins
Raised in New England, Sennott began creating and acting stand-up while pursuing performance at a prestigious arts school. “Despite trying every conventional route, I couldn’t find my footing,” she explains. “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. And I just felt like, what am I doing here?”
Sennott took matters into her own hands, appearing at amateur nights with her friend and uploading uproarious (and very) bizarre comedy videos on the internet. One, Baby Cult, depicted a group of women fetishistically drawn to motherhood; another portrayed working at the preppy clothing store Hollister as similar to being trapped in a scary movie. By chance, she connected with Emma through campus film circles and eventually starring in her first film, Shiva Baby, a tense film set at a funeral gathering with echoes of the Safdie brothers’ movie. The central motif of her journey, she explains, has been peers offering opportunities, rather than traditional networks. Does that mean bypassing the usual powers? “Definitely not them”, she confirms, continuing with a laugh: “They prefer we don’t succeed.”
Rising Success
Individuals who were skeptical regarding her then will surely be feeling foolish now. Through she calls a “incredibly circular” development, she has achieved the perfect project. A few years back she uploaded a video titled on LA life on the internet, in which she lampooned Hollywood trailers (“Substance abuse is rampant here”). Six years on, she’s the co-showrunner (with her partner) of a comedy about LA residents balancing advantages of digital stardom (such as socializing at a celebrity’s house) with drawbacks (your client being accused of being a drug-addled thief, and perhaps becoming a risky outcast). It would be simple to make a program about digital influence that was horribly idealized—or, worse, one that mocked at its subjects. This show avoids both, making for a depiction of affluent young adult life that’s honest about the chaos and the glamour.
Balanced Perspective
“Many programs portray youth and online life with disdain and mockery,” 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
