“Storytelling is a superpower … [It] helps me try to understand and try to find acceptance and make peace, rather than fight with everything going on in the world,” Jessica Bendinger said to an enraptured audience.
On Feb. 8, Bendinger, screenwriter, director and producer of iconic movies like “Bring It On” and “Stick It,” headlined Balch Auditorium as part of the latest installment of the Scripps Presents: Lights, Camera, Action series. Bendinger explained how she finds inspiration for her stories and discussed navigating Hollywood.
The event was a Q&A with Jacqueline Yedgar, assistant director of public events at Scripps Presents and Kaavya Narayan CM ’25.
Bendinger’s first film, “Bring It On,” an iconic teen comedy centered around high school cheerleading teams preparing for a national competition, explores cultural appropriation and feminism. Bendinger’s inspiration for “Bring It On” came from her childhood with divorced parents and her feelings of isolation as an only child, which motivated Bendinger to seek connection by observing and interpreting the stories of others.
“When you are the only [child] you’re trying to figure out the context, so I was a kid trying to figure out context everywhere,” Bendinger said. “Writing to me felt like the opportunity to be a fly on the wall of anybody’s life … [it] let me get my place and figure this out. And that led to … wanting to be an entertainer and [entertaining] people with stories.”
Bendinger explained how a mononucleosis infection in college impacted her storytelling. Bendinger watched cheerleading competitions during her recovery and was inspired by the athletes’ ability to command attention.
“You feel uninvited and excluded as a kid and then you go to a game as a little girl and you see these young women who are commanding the attention … that was oddly revolutionary for me,” she said.
Bendinger also emphasized the importance of vulnerability in storytelling.
“When you tell stories that are for kind of everyone, they end up [being] for no one,” Bendinger said. “It’s by focusing on the niche things that you really care about and that are precious to you and taking that risk of vulnerability that somebody else might find it interesting.”
While living out of her car in Los Angeles trying to sell the screenplay to production companies, Bendinger faced 27 rejections. The experience, she says, taught her the value of persistence and emphasized the necessity of creative messaging.
Bendinger vividly reenacted the manner in which she communicated her manifold ideas to Hollywood producers, recalling how she disguised themes like socioeconomic inequality in a propulsive, entertaining plot.
“I hid the medicine in the candy,” Bendinger said. “You want to lure people in and then they’re having a good time and then [they say] oh my god, I’ve never thought about that.”
Yedgar said that the energy Bendinger inspired was palpable.
“I [hope] that [the audience] feels happier and that it sparked creativity,” Yedgar said. “We all have creativity that sometimes we forget about because we get busy with life and it’s so nice to come together in person and inspire each other creatively.”
Bendinger also spent some time recounting the power imbalance she frequently encountered during the production process. She noted that many male producers do not value women’s stories.
Bendinger expressed the difficulty of having to pitch her passion projects to producers with feigned indifference, despite the pain that rejection often brings.
When success doesn’t materialize, she explained, an alternative path is the only feasible option — though those paths are still fraught with challenges.
“Sometimes Plan B is the best plan you can have,” Bendinger said. “You sell [a script] and then you’ve got to litigate with the studio. You’ve got to litigate with the producers. You’ve got to fight for the story.”
When asked what advice she has for people seeking to enter the movie industry, Bendinger recommended that they steer clear of Hollywood.
“If you want to be a storyteller, be a storyteller and figure it out,” Bendinger said. “Figure out a way to tell your stories. I would be encouraging people to practice with the free tools available and become undeniable. If you create something that’s viral, Hollywood will come knocking.”
Attendee Clara Desmond SC ’26 appreciated Bendinger’s advice to trust one’s intuition.
Desmond referenced Bendinger’s anecdote about fighting for the line ”people are dogs, too” to remain in “Bring It On,” against a producer’s wishes.
“Trusting when you know something in your story is good and to just keep going [is key],” Desmond said.
Attendee Anna Beattie PZ ’24 was both inspired by Bendinger’s persistence and surprised that she advised storytellers to stay away from her industry.
“It was interesting [that] she said, ‘if you could, don’t go into Hollywood,’” Beattie said. “It’s inspiring to see how she succeeded even though there’s so much against this change of perspective in storytelling. It really solidified this idea of having storytelling that [shares] the vulnerable part of yourself.”
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