Elisa (also called Eliza in some versions) features in the anime adaptation of "The Wild Swans" across three episodes. She is the only sister to eleven brothers. After their father remarries a wicked queen, the queen transforms her brothers into swans through witchcraft. Cursed, they remain swans by day, reverting to human form only at night.

To rescue her brothers, Elisa embarks on a dangerous quest guided by a fairy. She discovers she must weave shirts from stinging nettles to break the spell. Gathering the nettles causes her intense pain and severe blisters on her hands. Crucially, she must maintain absolute silence during her entire task; speaking a single word would kill both her and her brothers.

Her journey brings her to a distant kingdom. The king there finds her and, despite her silence, falls deeply in love, offering her shelter in his castle. She continues knitting the nettle shirts in secret. The king proposes marriage, and Elisa accepts. However, her silence and secretive trips to gather nettles from a church graveyard at night arouse suspicion. The kingdom's archbishop becomes convinced she practices dark magic, especially after seeing her near graves linked to ghoulish spirits. This misunderstanding leads to her being condemned to burn at the stake for witchcraft.

At her execution, Elisa desperately knits the final shirt. As flames climb the pyre, her swan brothers descend. She hurls the completed shirts over them, breaking the curse and restoring their human forms, though the youngest brother retains a swan wing where the last sleeve remained unfinished. Freed from the curse, Elisa regains her voice and explains the truth, proving her innocence. Miraculously, the pyre's wood takes root and bursts into bloom, symbolizing her purity. The king places one of these flowers upon her chest, reviving her. They then proceed with their marriage.