Denise was born in Tehran to political activist parents who fled to Berlin, Germany, after the Islamic revolution. Raised by a single mom in a housing project, she soon discovered that writing helped her get through tough times and dedicated herself to the craft.

Against her family’s wishes, she dropped out of pre-med and moved to Los Angeles, where she enrolled in the UCLA TV Writers’ Program. There, she placed first in their annual competition and gained representation.

She is currently Co-Producer on true crime series MANHUNT (Netflix/Charter) and has previously written for several TV shows, including military action series THE BRAVE (NBC), sci-fi series THE EXPANSE (Amazon) and the video game SHADOW OF MORDOR.

Inspired by her own journey, Denise gravitates towards stories about outsiders who take on the system and, subsequently, find their true purpose in life.

She’s fluent in English, German and Farsi.