In the News

Meet Melissa Kirkendall

Sept 11,2023 : Canvas Rebel Magazine

We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Melissa Kirkendall. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Melissa below.

Melissa, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Can you talk to us about a project that’s meant a lot to you?

In recent years I have been lucky enough to be able to pick projects, rather than just take what work is offered to me. One of the things I love about making film is it causes you to learn about all sorts of things you might not normally be interested in so to me they’ve all been meaningful to me in some way. However, the most meaningful film I have made is a short I directed and produced called “You are Me & I am You” about an indigenous midwife and healer in the high sierras of Ecuador who has dedicated her life to improving the lives of the people in her community – especially indigenous women whom she’s become an advocate for.

Everyday Visionary :: Melissa Kirkendall

02 MAY, 2018 : The Collaborative No. 12

Today we are featuring Everyday Visionary Melissa Kirkendall, who is a film director, producer, and possiblitarian.  She has worked on a  variety of TV and film productions for FOX, ABC, NBC, TOUCHSTONE and LIFETIME, but it is her documentaries that really shine and show her heart…

Lake Travis Film Festival announces June lineup

BY SARAH ASCH : Austin American Statesman May 1, 2021

…In a very different film about health care, Melissa Kirkendall’s short tells the story of an indigenous healer and midwife in Ecuador, Carmen Cumba, who is fighting for equality for indigenous people and women. The project, which is in Spanish with English subtitles, was partially funded by grants from the city of Austin, Kirkendall said. Filming was interrupted by the pandemic but she was still able to turn the material she had into a short film.

Meet Melissa Kirkendall / Texas based filmmaker

08 July, 2021 : Shoutout DFW

Hi Melissa, how do you think about risk?
….I have always been a risk taker. In my early twenties I took risks in order to own my own business’ first with an art gallery, then with a punk rock club and eventually with a music production company. As I took each risk, I learned more. I had to keep taking bigger risks to grow my business and be successful.

I feel like my journey in the film industry is a constant series of risks. Early on it was accepting one job and turning another down hoping I made the right choice for the one that would actually happen. Over the years, my risks in film have become more creatively based with my own projects. I took a big leap of faith risk to jump on a plane to Ecuador on a hunch that there was an interesting story there… and now my short film “You are Me & I am You” is evidence that I was right.

After Energizing The Music Scene, Melissa Kirkendall Switched to Films (About Music).

Welcome to Local Music 'Mericans, where we meet the people in the local music scene that you don't see on stages. Melissa Kirkendall is a filmmaker. It wasn't always this way. In her younger years, Kirkendall spent a good chuck of her time immersed in the local music scene --...

By Alan Ayo : Dallas Observer August 16, 2011

Melissa Kirkendall is a filmmaker. It wasn't always this way. In her younger years, Kirkendall spent a good chuck of her time immersed in the local music scene -- and primarily in the Fort Worth area.

Ever attend a blues, rock or metal shows at the Ridglea Theater? Chances are, you have her to thank for what were your predominantly positive experiences at the venue -- the powerful, gut-punching P.A., the above-average acoustics, and a lineup of music that not only pulled in national acts (30 Seconds to Mars, Queens of the Stone Age). On a local music level there were plenty of other Ridglea showcases and talent battles -- or, basically, support.

That's the kind of local music contributor Melissa Kirkendall has always been.