Meet Elisa Bell | Screenwriter

We had the good fortune of connecting with Elisa Bell and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Elisa, career-wise, where do you want to be in the end?
Before I start at the end, I’ll start at the start. I’ve been a professional working screenwriter for over 25 years. Somehow, I knew early on what I wanted to do: write. The form that I fell in love with was screenwriting. I graduated from the USC Cinema School and then worked at Tri-Star Pictures in the story department all day, while I wrote scripts at night. After I wrote my eighth script (yes, that’s a lot of pages and passes) I sold my ninth script. I “grew up” during the golden age of spec scripts, where studio bidding wars often took spec prices into the stratosphere. I was lucky enough to write one of those scripts, Thirty Wishes. (A script with Michael J. Fox that regrettably never got made.) After that, I worked constantly for a pretty darn long period of time. I’ve worked with Steven Spielberg, Diane Keaton and Matthew McConaughey, just to name a few. And I’ve had several movies produced including the Chevy Chase comedy, Vegas Vacation, and teen favorite, Sleepover. But as I got older, things shifted in the industry. (Hollywood, it’s true, does not love an older woman.). I actually had an agent point out to me that I was “no longer the shiny new toy.” Yes, I’m Woody, not Buzz. But I firmly believe that older also means having a deeper more layered ability to tell interesting, relatable stories. Experience has to count for something. Right? Each script that I write always has a piece of me in it, and now there are just more pieces to add. So. Back to the actual question — end game. I recently sold a mystery/dramedy spec script to River Road Entertainment about female sheriff in a small town and on her first day, a woman disappears. The female lead is tasked with untangling the mystery but also learning to take the second chance, even when it arrives in a form that you do not expect. It’s the best script I’ve written. It’s also the most personal. So that’s end game for me, get this one made. Take the second chance.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
Since I kind of already answered this question up front, here’s a bit of fun:

The very first script that I sold was a big action thriller. There was a wide-spread industry belief that women cannot write action. (Sadly, I think the same still holds true today.) So my agent and I decided to put a man’s name on the script. Suddenly I was Brett Newport. And Brett sold his script. I walked into the meeting and the executive literally said, “You’re not a man.” And I replied, “Sorry to disappoint. Let’s take this meeting.” And we did.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
A bit outside Los Angeles is a lovely little suburb called Westlake Village. It’s the kind of place that has Fourth of July parades with kids on bikes and pumpkin patches with tiny trains running through lighted arches. We raised our son here and I’d recommend it to pretty much anyone to visit…or to stay. Stonehaus is a local favorite, an outdoor bar, firepits, wandering paths, and a vineyard, all with a European flare. And Tuscany has been our favorite go-to restaurant here for 20 plus years, never a lacking meal always the best waiter, Kevin.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
My shoutout, hands down, is to Justen Dardis. My first agent. The first person to take a chance on me. The first person (other than my parents) who believed. Sadly, Justen passed away many years ago. But he was around to participate in my success and attend one of my premieres. It only takes one person to believe in you. If the big man up there has an agent, it’s definitely Justen.

Other: IMDB https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0068183/