Monica Lee Bellais

Monica Lee Bellais is an American writer/producer. She has international production experience in Canada, Egypt, England, France, Germany, Iceland, Italy, Japan, Lebanon, Mexico, Monaco, Pakistan, Thailand, and the United Arab Emirates. Monica is in her second term serving as a Council member of the Writers Guild of America, East, AFL-CIO (WGAE), a labor union representing thousands of members who write content for motion pictures, television, news, and digital media. She is now in her seventh year as an Advisory Committee member for Women in Film & Video (WIFV) in Washington, D.C. She also served for four years as a Board member for WIFV. Monica has lobbied on Capitol Hill for the entertainment industry and women in the arts. In 2019 she partnered with the National Action Alliance for Suicide Prevention and the Entertainment Industry Council to create the White Paper "Recommendations for Depicting Suicide" in television, journalism, and digital media. It's a collaborative, concise, and well-vetted by top mental health experts. That same year, she received an award from Veterans in Media & Entertainment for her contribution to veterans' transition from military carriers to the entertainment industry. In 2017 she was Honorary Guest, along with internationally known Icelandic actress Edda Björgvinsdóttir, at the Northern Wave International Film Festival in Rif, Iceland. Monica has worked in development, financing, production, and post-production for many projects, including Buck Run (James Les Gros, Amy Hardgreaves), the comedy special Shawn Pelofsky: Stretch It Out, Bennie's (Pilot starring T.V. Icon Ed Asner, Oscar Nominee Cathy Moriarty); Wakefield (Jennifer Garner, Bryan Cranston). In 2016 she penned the film TRI shot in the Washington, D.C. area. At TeleProductions International and she partnered with Egyptian actor Amr Waked in Cairo, on several projects. While at Discovery Channel, she worked on 100+ hours of programming, including Stuff Happens with host Bill Nye, Tac Tech for the Military Channel, and the Emmy® Award-winning series Discovery Atlas. During her time at Lightstorm Entertainment, Monica honed her development skills working for Academy® Award Winning producers Jon Landau and James Cameron. Before that, she worked in the Office of Jeffrey Katzenberg at DreamWorks, SKG. Monica started her career at Warner Bros. Records (WBR) and supported music industry legends - Russ Thyret (CEO), Phil Quartararo (President), and Bob Merlis (EVP, Worldwide Corporate Communications). She promoted through corporate media communication and marketing methods WBR's high-profile artists including Madonna, Cher, Neil Young, Fleetwood Mac, Chris Isaak, Goo Goo Dolls, Flaming Lips, Red Hot Chili Peppers, R.E.M., Barenaked Ladies, Eric Clapton, Tom Petty & The Heart Breakers, Faith Hill, Foo Fighters, and many more. Monica's professional memberships include the Writers Guild of America, East, the Producers Guild of America, SAG-AFTRA, National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences - Documentary Programming Peer Group, British Academy of Film and Television Arts, Women In Film & Video, New York Women in Film & Television, and The National Press Club. She holds a B.A. in Journalism and Mass Communications from New Mexico State University.