Elizabeth Ball

liz@elizball.com  •  www.elizball.com

Experience 

Scriptwriter                                     June 2011 to December 2012   Cerebellum Corporation, San Francisco, CA
Researched, wrote, and assisted with production of the Standard Deviants series of humor-based educational videos. Worked independently and with a team to produce accurate, entertaining, and educationally sound content and associated classroom materials. Also copyedited all marketing and intra-office communications.

Development Intern    October 2010 to present

Pretty Pictures, Universal City, CA

Assisted two producers of A-list feature films. Wrote extensive coverage, gave script notes, performed research, offered tech support, covered phones, and oversaw various other administrative tasks in a busy office.

Writer/Development Intern    July 2010 to present

The Art of Health, Mother Goose, Inc.

Provided development, writing, and research assistance for documentary
television series. Worked with documentary director on series concept and
financing options, wrote and edited project documents, and independently
set up day-to-day operations. 

Materials Writer    November 2008 to December 2009

United States Department of State, Washington, DC

Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs
Contractor, ABBTECH Staffing Services
Department of Defense security clearance: SECRET

Wrote and edited materials and in-house documents for the Office of English Language Programs: contributed to quarterly academic EFL journal, edited others’ journal submissions, and prepared remarks for public presentations. Also provided writing and editorial support for all other materials published by the office, including In the Loop, a dictionary of American idioms; an anthology of excellent young adult literature for overseas youth; and a series of lessons on teaching EFL with photography.

Film Critic        October 2006 to August 2009

Cinemahype.com; 451 Press

Ran daily film blog: reported entertainment news; attended industry events; wrote film reviews, personal essays, and film-related humor; and maintained online community. Featured on NPR’s The Takeaway in June 2008.

Editorial Assistant I/II/III    December 2003 to October 2008

Key Curriculum Press, Emeryville, CA

Oversaw editorial process for secondary-level textbooks for native English-speaking and ELL students. Copyedited and formatted manuscripts; coordinated editorial decisions with editors, authors, and in-house departments; organized classroom field tests; tested manuscripts for readability using Fry, Dale-Chall, and Flesch-Kincaid methods; and communicated testing and teacher feedback to editors. Supervised five other editorial assistants.

Assistant Editor/Reporter          November 2002 to December 2003

Martinez News-Gazette, Martinez, CA

Pitched and wrote news and feature stories for triweekly regional newspaper and launched monthly lifestyle magazine, Diablo Currents. Took photographs, proofread both publications prior to printing, and assisted with layout for both publications.   

Research/Production Intern    September 2002 to December 2002

Heyday Books, Berkeley, CA

Obtained artwork permissions for At Work: The Art of California Labor. Researched works, contacted artists and curators, and negotiated print reproduction rights.   

Writing Advisor    September 2000 to May 2002

University of Puget Sound, Tacoma, WA

Taught college writing workshops to English-native and ELL students, including one-on-one tutoring sessions on style, grammar, sentence structure, and organized thinking.

Editorial Intern       January 2002 to May 2002

Illumination Arts Publishing, Bellevue, WA

Edited children’s book manuscripts, wrote dust jacket copy, and coordinated trade show appearances, including BookExpo America.

ADDITIONAL SKILLS  & HONORS

Rosemary Van Arsdell Award

Conferred upon a single Puget Sound graduate for excellence in Writing, Rhetoric, and Culture

Technology Skills: Skilled in social media and research; conversant in HTML. Advanced user of all common software, plus FileMaker Pro and BookMaster.

EDUCATION        

B.A. in English, emphasis in Writing, Rhetoric, and Culture    2002

Minor in Psychology

University of Puget Sound, Tacoma, WA


Bookbuilders West Publishing Crash Course            2004

EditCetera ABCs of Copyediting                       2007

Comedy Writing Basics course                         2008