Melina grew up in Rochester, NY, home to garbage plates, Wegmans, and most influentially, Kodak. At a young age she grew an affinity for photography, and had her work shown for the first time at Nazareth College's 2017 Shared Spaces Exhibit. That same year, she won the 2017 Monroe County PSA Competition and had her work broadcast on local television.

​While attending the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications at Syracuse University, Melina studied Television, Radio & Film Production along with minors in French Language and Francophone Culture and Art History.  She became a member of Delta Kappa Alpha, the professional cinematic society on campus, and spent her weekends on sets. Melina also worked at Newhouse's equipment distribution center for her entire academic career, giving her first-hand knowledge of industry standard equipment.

In the summer of 2019, Melina studied in Los Angeles through Syracuse, and balanced classes while interning at Doomsday Entertainment. She then spent her fall semester in London, where she fell in love with art history. 

During the pandemic, Melina sought to create an outlet for young filmmakers to share their work during an isolated time. In December of 2020, she co-founded the Salt City International Film Festival while in her childhood bedroom. The festival received well over a hundred submissions and brought student filmmakers from across the globe together to appreciate each other's work. 

Melina's backgrounds in film production, still photography, and art history, work cohesively to capture each frame of a project with a strong artistic intent. Her genuine passion for filmmaking leads her to put her all into every project.

Melina currently works at Iconic Talent Agency as an assistant to the Features and Television Department.

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