Rising Stars: Meet Jesse Cilio of Melrose Hill

Today we’d like to introduce you to Jesse Cilio.

Hi Jesse, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers?
I saw this older Lady on the subway in NYC when I was around 5 and she was taking those little creamers from one garbage bag and drinking it and throwing the empty’s into another garbage bag, over and over it was endless . I think this interaction had a profound impact on my story telling , because it was the first time I realized I was empathic towards how I see people and feel about things in general . At 5 years old I understood this person in my own way and felt what might’ve been happening in their life.

Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
Nothing is smooth, that’s what helps shape who you are. For some people, every day is a struggle just to get out of bed, put on a smile, and face the world . Especially if they’ve endured traumatic experiences. These experiences linger like ghosts, always seeking a place to call home. But embracing them and carrying them with you is what builds character and makes true heroes.

Being creatively well rounded, empathetic, and understanding of all kinds of people is a skill that can’t be taught in school or on the job, It comes from life experiences. It’s like the essence of cool, you can’t teach it, but you’re born with it. As a human being, you should never abandon what makes you different just to fit in.

The tools I’ve acquired didn’t come from reading a book once a week. They came from the people who have touched my life, whether they’re no longer with us, we’ve lost touch, or they’re still my friends from childhood. They come from family, relationships, and even strangers who share their stories with me on the subway, on a park bench, in the grocery line opening up about their heartbreak. It’s about relating to diverse individuals, it’s the art of being human.

The ability to communicate your worth and value is one of the greatest things anyone can hear. Let’s strive for that, what was the question again?

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?
You know some people are like shooting stars in your life. Beautiful and once seen and experienced, never forgotten. I want my movies to be felt differently after each time you watch them .

I have a feature film I just finished called Milk Milk lemonade , it’s going to be playing festivals late 2026 and 2027 before being released .

I’m in pre production on this movie Pure Heroine . It’s a heartbreaking found family tragedy told with the humor, grime, and unpredictability of people barely surviving Los Angeles.

I have a group art show that ends this week in Bogat’a Columbia at Casas Riegner Art Gallery .

Can you talk to us about how you think about risk?
Sometimes your soul outgrows the life you built, and once you know it, you cannot go back to sleep.

I’m beginning to believe regret is inevitable. We survive our failures, our mistakes, even our humiliations. What breaks us is the unlived life, the risk we never took, the work we never made, the person we were too afraid to become.

So buy the fucking ticket. Take the ride. This life ends anyway.

And if someone you love is brave enough to burn down the life that is killing them in order to find something real, don’t hold them back.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://vimeo.com/1165914036/814540a237?share=copy&fl=sv&fe=ci
• Instagram: @milkmilklemonademovie