EMMA NEEDELL
Writer // Director // Producer
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Bio
I am a screenwriter, producer, and director who champions original storytelling in a time when Hollywood has become obsessed with reboots, sequels, and IP-driven content. My break-out script, The Water Man, attracted the attention of David Oyelowo and Oprah Winfrey's Harpo films, who came onboard to produce the project when I was 24 years old. After The Water Man was featured on the 2015 Blacklist, it spent a few years in development at Disney, until ShivHans (Trumbo, Captain Fantastic) came onboard to produce and finance the project. Production began soon after David Oyelowo signed on as director, and he cast Rosario Dawson, Alfred Molina, Maria Bello, Lonnie Chavis, and Amiah Miller. I served as an executive producer on set. The film is currently in post-production.
My other work includes prison break musical Songs of the Damned, which sold to MGM/Orion with Oscar and Grammy-winning artist Mark Ronson composing original music. I am a writer and executive producer on the project. In 2017, I sold an original fantasy-adventure pitch to Netflix, with Anonymous Content producing and Oscar-winning Patrick Osborne attached to direct. I've also directed numerous short films that have played at film festivals across America, and wrote a short graphic novel story for DC's Vertigo Comics.
In addition to my original work, I have been tapped by Fox Studios, Apple, and Steven Spielberg’s Amblin Entertainment to consult in think tanks and on projects in development.
