Melanie A. Ragone was born in San Jose, California and raised in Morgan Hill, California. She has been in love with film from an early age and was brought up watching classic films from the Golden Age of Hollywood. As a child of the 80’s, these movies also heavily influenced her love for film. At nine years old, Melanie’s fate with the film industry was sealed after a trip to Universal Studios: E.T. attraction in Hollywood, California. She went on to pursue a career in the film industry and studied filmmaking at the Art Institute of Atlanta.
Melanie spent over a decade in Atlanta, GA as a union first unit Grip. Working her way up from Production Assistant to Best Boy Grip, on some of the largest feature films and television sets in the world. She worked on productions such as The Walking Dead, The Vampire Diaries, The Hunger Games, and Black Panther: Wakanda Forever. Her work was featured in the New York Times article “What is a Grip? The Few Women Doing the Job in Hollywood Explain”. As a woman who achieved success and leadership roles in a heavily male-dominated field, Melanie is passionate about telling womens’ stories and encouraging women to pursue careers in the film industry. She is a mentor with the non-profit organization, Women in Film. Melanie made the move to Los Angeles in 2018 where she is currently writing and producing her own projects. Below the Line is her first book.