Today we’d like to introduce you to Melissa Robinson.
Hi Melissa, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.
Hi I’m Melissa, but many of my friends call me Lissa. I have been working in the arts for over 20 years. After graduating from LaGuardia College in 2005 with a degree in Commercial Photography, I heavily pursued fashion photography and would spend a lot of my time reaching out to modeling agencies like Wilhemina and Fenton Moon, for access to their models for test shoots, while also collaborating with talented fashion designers, hair stylists, and make up artists. It was a great time and I have very fond memories. However after a few years of pursuing that dream, I eventually lost that passion, and before I knew it I no longer had the desire to be a photographer. I tried dabbling in some other creative fields like graphic design and wardrobe styling, but I kept finding myself feeling unfulfilled.
That led me to work in the nightclub scene for a while, and although I was making good money, it was hard to no longer feel like I was in pursuit of anything. So, after randomly receiving a flyer in the mail from Full Sail University, I figured “why not”, and decided to go back to school, with the goal of possibly becoming an Art Director. It was there that I was introduced to motion design and what would become my new passion, video editing. After taking a course in After Effects and Premiere Pro, I was hooked, and after some research I realized the possibilities. Title design, trailer editing, visual fx; there were so many avenues I could take these skills. That’s when my desire for trailers and animating titles began.
After going back home to NYC I headed out to what was called The Motion Conference in Sante Fe, where I got to meet some of my heroes in both Title Design and Trailer Editing. One of those people was Karin Fong of Imaginary Forces. I’ll never forget what she told me: “Choose your favorite movie and create a title sequence for it; create a trailer for it”.
I really took what she said to heart and ran with it. Then again while listening to a podcast, I heard Joey Korenman of School of Motion say, “create the work you want to get paid for”. That was confirmation and so I did just that.
I created my own version of the Insidious opening title sequence, and a faux Netflix horror promo called, “Niteflix”, and added those to my portfolio. They landed me my first video editing job for a company called eWomen in Addison, TX. Now, I should mention that before I applied to them, I had applied for a company called Funimation, and was declined twice. I later realized the universe was cooking…
Fast forward a little under a year later and I decide to pursue freelancing again, but this time as a video editor. After asking for advice from some pretty inspiring figures in the industry, (Jayson Whitmore of Laundry and 3D wizard Handel Eugene) and reading The Freelance Manifesto, I decided to take a leap of faith and quit my full-time job. Within a few weeks, a representative from Freeman Leonard named Rachel Runnels, reached out to me asking if I’d be interested in working with her. A few weeks later she asked me if I’d heard of a company called Funimation, because they just so happen to be looking for video editors that could edit trailers. That was an absolute full circle moment for me, and that was when my trailer editing journey began. That’s also when I truly understood the phrase, “Every delay is not a denial”.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
It’s definitely been quite the journey to get to where I am now. As I mentioned earlier, I used to work in the nightclub scene. And even though I decided to go back to school, I needed money to sustain me as school was 40+ hours a week, basically a full-time job. A part-time job just wasn’t enough to support me, so although I didn’t want to go back to the club, I did and just reminded myself it was temporary.
After graduating in 2015, I still needed to make money while I pursued these dreams I had, and so I continued to work in the club. In fact, that is initially what brought me to Dallas, I’d heard I could make good money here. Yes I was a freelance graphic designer, but I wasn’t making enough to make a living. After college I moved back home for a while and found myself in a rut. Not only did I not have my own place, but breaking into the motion design industry in New York was just really challenging. And with me not being in a good place financially, I looked to my mother to help me. It was very humbling as I hadn’t lived with my parents in over a decade. My mother would literally give me money to put gas in my car, buy work shoes, and sometimes even pay my house fee. It was a tough time for me for sure.
However, after taking a “work trip” to Dallas and doing well, I decided to try out this new city and see what happens. With $500 in my pocket, I booked an AirBnB and lived there for about a month. I worked in the club every night determined to save money, while also taking motion design courses online, and then sending out resumes. I remember when I got the keys to my first apartment…I sat on the floor and cried. It was the first time in almost 2 years that I’d had my own place.
Fast forward a couple years later, while I’m working at Funimation, my grandmother dies, and my mother, who was my grandparents’ care-taker, was having a hard time handling it. I fly to New York for the funeral, then head back to Dallas, and then the pandemic happens. For context, my grandfather had just died only 10 months prior to my grandmother dying. So now my mom is alone in New York, struggling to grieve the death of her parents, during a time when the world is essentially in quarantine. It was really tough.
I didn’t have much time to grieve and I was also in a place where I suddenly thought I might lose my mom too. My mother ended up having to be institutionalized and within a week or two, I flew to New York to bring her to Dallas to be with me. She’s been here ever since.
A couple years later, the Funimation to Crunchyroll acquisition happened, and my entire department was released from their contracts. It was a depressing time. Thank God my mom was with me as she was my emotional support at home. It’s not often that you not only get to work with great people, as my co-workers were a pretty awesome bunch, but you also get to work with a company you grew up watching. One of my very first edits was for Dragon Ball Z and Attack on Titan. To say I was excited is an understatement. It was a pretty heartbreaking time if I’m being honest. I know everything happens for a reason, but at the time it was quite the rub.
As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
I’m a video editor who specializes in cutting trailers and promotional videos for TV series and movies. Currently I’m Senior Video Editor at MHz Choice, which is a streaming platform that shows true crime, murder mysteries, and dramas from all over the world. I get to work with a lot of very intriguing shows on a regular basis, which I love.
There are a few pieces I’m pretty proud of. Last year in 2024 I got to work on a promotional piece for the show “Babylon Berlin”. Fun fact, I used to be a Teaching Assistant at School of Motion, and one of the courses I worked with was Visual FX for Motion. One of my tasks in addition to cutting this promo for “Babylon Berlin”, was to incorporate some VFX. Granted it was just tracking some texts, but I must say I felt pretty good about it, haha. The teacher in me felt like I was practicing what I preached to my students.
Another piece of work I’m very proud of is a trailer I did for a documentary called, “The Missing Heiress: Betrayals on the Riviera”. It’s a 2 part series about a French woman who goes missing, and her ex lover is the prime suspect in her disappearance. My boss gave me full creative freedom and it really allowed me to experiment with how I chose to tell the story, utilize sounds, and apply visual effects. I was so proud of it that I asked that we enter it in for a Telly Award. We just received our Telly trophies last week; a very proud moment for me. 🙂
There are definitely other trailers like “Awake”, “A German Crime Story”, the anime “Wonder Egg Priority”, and the many Menu Loops I did for the anime “My Hero Academia”, that I’m still quite fond of.
It’s hard to say what sets me apart from others as far as my editing is concerned. I will experiment as much as I’m allowed to, and I enjoy working on projects that almost seem too difficult for me. However, the thing that will probably make me stick out the most, is that “I’m me”, haha. What I mean is, because I have a fashion photography background, and used to work with animated features, I tend to look at live action differently. I also worked at a school that taught motion design, and so even though I’m an editor, a lot of times I think like a motion designer. I utilize concepts like “eye trace”, essentially guiding the viewer’s eye throughout a video. Or just like motion designers use “secondary animation”, I like using “secondary sounds”; meaning I think about cause and effect a lot when it comes to sound design, in relation to what’s being shown on screen. As a horror movie fan, I also take advantage of any opportunity to make things either look or sound spooky and unsettling.
What do you like and dislike about the city?
The thing I appreciate the most about Dallas is the space. As much as I love my city, New York is very congested and it can be too much sometimes. Not to mention all the parallel parking in what seems like the most narrow streets ever. I really like that I don’t feel like I’m on top of everyone here.
That being said, I do miss being surrounded by more diversity. I find that if I have a desire for West Indian food or Dominican food, I have to really go out of my way to find it. I miss not having to do that. I also miss pumpernickel bagels, but that might just be a personal problem.
Contact Info:
- Website: http://melissa-robinson.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lissanylon/
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/robinsonlmelissa/
- Other: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wHfzHN_veH8&t=3s
Image Credits
– German Crime Story: MHz Choice
– Awake: MHz Choice
– Wonder Egg Priority: Crunchyroll / Sony Entertainment
– Infinite Dendrogram: Crunchyroll / Sony Entertainment
