Karissa Hamilton-Bannis

Karissa Hamilton-Bannis

Karissa is a screenwriting graduate of the National Film and Television School, writing for film television and theatre. 

While at the NFTS, she worked on various projects, most notably animated short film  Kahanikar – The Storyteller, with director Nandita Jain, which was in the Official Selection at the Edinburgh International Film Festival in 2011. It also won Best Animated Short at the Los Angeles Indie Short Fest and was longlisted for the Academy Awards. 

Since 2020, Karissa has been part of the writing team for long-running soap Hollyoaks (Lime Pictures/Channel 4), having written more than 25 episodes to date. She has also written an episode of flagship CBBC series  The Dumping Ground, as well as one for the Get Even spin-off, Rebel Cheer Squad (BBC iPlayer), based on the Gretchen McNeil’s books Don’t Get Mad. Most recently, she wrote for A Kind of Spark (9 Story/CBBC), a series based on neurodivergent writer Elle McNicoll’s novel of the same name. 

Karissa is currently developing three original series: a supernatural comedy-drama, Possessed; Down Grove, a story of female friendship split over three decades (both for Hartswood Films); and Championess, about women bare knuckle boxers in the 18th Century, for Watford & Essex.  

Agent: Julie Press, Kiston Press Associates