Melissa Lawrenz is a Chicago based filmmaker and editor. She holds a B.A. in Theatre Arts from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and an M.F.A. in film production from Columbia College Chicago. Her work has been exhibited in more than 200 film festivals in North America, Africa, Europe and Asia including the film feature The Other One and shorts like Jesse James, The Miracle, Towing, Cut Out, Taco Mary and recently Emerald City which as been accepted to 60 film festivals in 2024 and won numerous awards. Her experimental documentary I Hope, Grandmother screened on PBS in Illinois and Wisconsin and at the National Museum of Women in the Arts in Washington D.C. She also worked on the television series, Gangland, that aired on the History Channel.
Melissa is also an innovative and creative storyteller in broadcast commercials and branded and social media content. She was the Senior Video Editor for The Onion for five years and edited website content, a television special The Onion Presents: The Iconic Images of Election 2016, and numerous broadcast commercials. She has also edited branded and social content for the A.V. Club, Gizmodo, The Root, Jalopnik, The Takeout, Teen Vogue, Vogue, Vanity Fair, Wired, Bon Appétit, Epicurious, House & Garden, Architectural Digest, World of Interiors and TIDAL.
Research Area
Post Production
Professional Associations
WGA-E