In Frances Ha , the eponymous character 's hometown is in the suburbs of Sacramento , California .
From there the film follows Frances to Chinatown ( where she shares an apartment with her friends Lev and Benji for a brief period ) , her hometown in Sacramento , California ( where she sees her family for Christmas and reconnects with high school friends ) , Paris ( for an uneventful two-day getaway that she pays for on a credit card ) , Poughkeepsie ( to work at her alma mater Vassar as a waitress and summer RA ) , and finally back to Washington Heights in New York City .