Five Good Minutes: Jolie Vanier

Gaining motivation from her family vacations to Paradise Cove, teen actress and author Jolie Vanier, 14, was recently the recipient of the Best Youth Screenplay at the International Family Film Festival in Hollywood. 

Vanier checked in with Malibu Patch to explain just what it is about Malibu and Paradise Cove that inspired her award-winning screenplay. 

Malibu Patch: For such a young girl, winning this award is a huge accomplishment. What motivated you to beginning screenwriting?

Jolie Vanier: Well, I’ve been writing for quite a while. With help from family and friends, I started writing and illustrating my first book -- “Puwaii Adventures with Joliea and Friends” -- when I was only eight years old. And, as a film and theater actress for the past four years, I’ve learned a lot from studying scripts and seeing how the characters and plots develop.

MP: Puwaii Adventures is quite the creation. I hear that Paradise Cove has served as one of your biggest influences. What about Paradise Cove contributed to such a creative work?

JV: It is a favorite vacation spot for my family and it’s so totally beautiful! Part of its charm is all the amazing sea life you encounter. Paradise Cove inspired characters, such as the fish Starlette and Sparkle, as well as my magical submarine PuOie! I wanted a form of transportation that incorporates an aquarium to make my sea characters feel at home. As a matter of fact, the Puwaii books actually started when I drew my idea of PuOie on a paper place mat in a Paradise Cove restaurant. My mother snatched up that sketch and, as they say, the rest was history!

MP: What are your ultimate goals? What are your thoughts on the future of this screenplay?

JV: I was approached by a number of people at the IFFF Awards Ceremony who were very encouraging about developing Puwaii as a film or TV series. I wrote the screenplay as a TV pilot and have developed 12 treatments for subsequent plots. So the idea has “legs” as they say. Most importantly, “Puwaii Adventures” is a family show and would appeal to all ages. You have travel to foreign lands, diverse cultures, magical people and happenings, many different kinds of animals and sea life and, or course, a villain who shows up to challenge Joliea and her crew. They have to build up their courage to confront him.

MP: The screenplay focuses on a young girl traveling around the world searching for fashion inspiration. How much are you into fashion personally?

JV: Oh, I’m into fashion in a big way! As a girl, my grandmother wanted to be a fashion designer and have her own Park Avenue shop. So she really encouraged me when I started sketching designs. Plus my grandmother and my mom took me to the big Pucci fashion show at the Phoenix Art Museum. That’s where I got my inspiration for the book’s Italian fashion designer, Mr. Puchini.

MP: You seem to have a wealth of knowledge for such a young girl. You focus on international experiences and you are aware of the environment, seeing as how PuOie is eco-friendly. What did you do before writing the screenplay to gain more knowledge about your topic?

JV: I’m fortunate enough to have done a lot of traveling; ranging from Malibu to the Grand Caymans to many European countries, including France and Italy.  
My brother Jared, who goes to Pepperdine University, is also very much into foreign travel; one of our favorite games is spinning the globe, singling out a country, and seeing how much we know about it (we can get kind of competitive!). And, of course, my family has always been concerned with the environment; especially the animals who enrich our lives so much. One of my favorite causes is the ASPCA; as a matter of fact, I’m going to be singing at an ASPCA fundraiser this October!