Melina Chiaverini

Melina Chiaverini is an Australian-born, Greek-Italian actress and writer living in Beverly Hills, California. The youngest of 4 children, Melina is the only child not named after a grandparent. Instead, she was christened after Greek icon, actress and politician, Melina Mercouri, and confesses "I've been chasing my name ever since..." Awarded the "T.V. Week" Acting Scholarship, Melina studied drama at The Australian Film & Television Academy, and later at the National Institute of Dramatic Art (Sydney), appearing in small film and television roles, and on the Sydney stage with great success as Desdemona in "Othello" (CUT Theatre); Célimène in "The Misanthrope" (Hair of the Dog); Antigone in "Antigone" (CUT Theatre); Linda Rotunda in "Savage in Limbo" (Hair of the Dog); Kitty Hawkins in "The Bold & The Reckless" (Sydney Fringe Festival - Winner, Best Actress); and the Nurse in "I've Had My Life" (Short 'n Sweet Festival), where Melina also made her directorial debut, and began writing for film. After winning a U.S. Green Card and moving to America, Melina continued screenwriting through the UCLA Extension Writers' Program, whilst studying acting at The Beverly Hills Playhouse. She appeared as Marilyn Monroe in Justin Lin's "Finishing the Game: The Search for a New Bruce Lee", and was seen on the television series "Las Vegas". Upon receiving the Women In Film Acting Mentorship, Melina wrote the short screenplay "Ingénue d'Or" which placed in the 2016 Shore Scripts Screenplay Competition, and was soon after produced (directed by, and starring Melina.) In 2018 Melina began a landmark collaboration with Mr. Spyros Mercouris to write the feature film biopic screenplay of his famous sister, Melina Mercouri. Mr. Mercouris called Melina Chiaverini "the chosen one", as he selectively passed the torch to her to tell his beloved sister's story. He thought that Melina reminded him of his sister, and affectionately gave her the moniker "Melina B". It was one of his last wishes that this film be made for his sister (R.I.P.). As such, today, the script has the ongoing support of the Mercouris family. 2020 is the 100th anniversary of Melina Mercouri's birth. It's also the year the feature screenplay "MELINA MERCOURI: I Was Born Greek" won the prestigious Scriptapalooza Fellowship. Since then, it has won/placed in over 18 additional international screenwriting competitions, and was most recently described as "one of the best spec. scripts out there" (Nicholl Fellowship, 2020.) Melina Chiaverini is currently developing the Melina Mercouri feature film project, whilst writing its limited series, and her next romantic comedy feature, "Pet Agent." Trivia: Melina speaks 3 languages (English, Greek & Italian); She placed 1st in Australia (English, Poetry & Social Studies) in her school finals; The 1st monologue she ever delivered on stage was the "Our Father" (The Lord's Prayer, recited in Greek); the most recent was her father's eulogy; Enjoys traveling and photography; Loves puzzle/logic games; Writes poetry; Loves singing and dance; & Became a vegan in 2017, is an avid animal rights activist, and makes the best vegan moussaka this side of Athens, Greece. Quotes about Melina: Pulitzer Prize and Academy Award winning author, John Patrick Shanley described Melina as "Sex in Technicolor" who writes "like a poet by some Summer sea." 3 Things Melina Concedes You Wouldn't Tell by Looking at Her Headshot: (i) Melina holds 3 degrees, including a law degree from The University of Sydney Law School (Honors/Valedictorian); (ii) She knows no subtlety; (iii) The rest is a disguise.