About

HELLO, I’M AN IDEA ARCHITECT, FAITH COMMUNITY LEADER, AND AWARD-WINNING DOCUMENTARY FILMMAKER.

I’m married to Lynn Barger Elliott, my amazing partner in life. We have three grown children who inspire us every day with their joy for life and adventures and live in Chicago, San Francisco, and New York City.

I have co-founded Emotect ai, Blue Lobsters Creative, the Miracle Year Project, and recently launched The Science of Emotions where I write about how to feel better to live better.

As a faith leader I love to teach about finding joy and faith, purpose and gratitude, within the gift that is our life. I serve as Co-Pastor of Sleepy Hollow Presbyterian Church in Marin Country, California with Lynn.

I’m an award-winning documentary filmmaker. Lost Boy Home tells the story of a Sudanese “Lost Boy” who returns to South Sudan to search for his parents. The Last Songwriter tells the story of streaming’s impact on songwriters and stars Emmylou Harris and Jason Isbell.

I graduated from Cornell University, Princeton Theological Seminary with a Master of Divinity, and San Francisco Theological Seminary with a Doctorate in communication.

As a child in Nairobi I was almost eaten by a lion; as a teenager, I published poems in national magazines and took games off a future Wimbledon champion; in Oxford, I gave a TED talk on the miracle of finding three blue lobsters in 48 hours; and I’ve finished seven marathons before street sweepers closed the course.

Books

Download: A Miracle Mindset Book.

Easter: 21 Stations

Download : Easter – 21 Stations

“Reminiscent of the work of Mary Oliver, Alan Lightman, and Wendell Berry, Elliott’s poetry and photographs teach, surprise, delight, and turn the reader of this book into a pilgrim who is changed, challenged, and enriched by embarking on this sacred journey.” – Amy Richter, Antimony: a Novel

Middle of the Maze : Five Secrets to Finding Your Way

“Wonderful new metaphor for life’s path. Great insights as authors show they’ve looked in the same places as all of us have, then came to this unique and inclusive conclusion.” –Derek Sivers, founder of CD Baby, author of Amazon Best Seller Anything You Want

“Middle of the Maze provides a wonderful map for finding your way through the maze of life…and (most excitingly) clues to discovering your elixir at the end of it all.” – Anjali Kumar, Warby Parker General Counsel, Just Eat the Soup: One Woman’s Search for a Little Peace and Enlightenment

Buy it on Amazon.

Film

LOST BOY HOME, narrated by Sam Waterston, premiered at the Palm Beach International Film Festival and tells the story of a Sudanese “Lost Boy” who returns to South Sudan to search for his parents. It won a Best Shorts Award and was featured at the Africa World Documentary Film Festival.

Watch Lost Boy Home

THE LAST SONGWRITER, premiered at the Nashville Film Festival and won an Audience Award. Starring Garth Brooks, Emmylou Harris and Jason Isbell, it spotlights the struggles of songwriters to make a living in the age of streaming.

Watch The Last Songwriter

Video

TED TALK – TED GLOBAL

In Oxford I spoke about encountering three blue lobsters in forty-eight hours and what that might suggest about the possibility and reality of miracles.

THIN PLACES – ST. PATRICK’S FOOTSTEPS

This video chronicles a trip to Ireland and walking in St. Patrick’s footsteps!

MUSIC VIDEO

Excited to share a music video I produced of Kari Lynch’s inspirational song “Better Than Today.” The song was co-written by myself and Kari and produced by Brian Vander Ark known for his hit song “Freshman” recorded by the Verve Pipe.