Photo Credits: Melissa Riemer
Louis and Mel in Paris and Marseille!
I was lucky enough to catch Melissa in Melbourne earlier this year. It is not often that we are in the same country, let alone same suburb! Despite the distance, we have always kept in touch.
We caught up face-to-face (albeit virtually) for this piece.
Photo Credit: Provided
WHO IS MELISSA?
GROWING UP
Melissa Riemer grew up in the same bayside suburbs of Melbourne as I did. Meeting at the age of five in prep, my childhood memories of Melissa were fun. We were creative types and we shared a mutual adoration for Andrew Lloyd Webber's "The Phantom of the Opera". Melissa was president of the "Squirrel Club" in primary school that I was of course a member of. Funnily enough, both of us are still crazy over squirrels and get very excited when we spot one. I enjoyed going to Melissa's house after school. I particularly liked the separate freezer of iced treats that her mum, Irene would keep well stocked. Melissa was always active with music, playing the piano. We both sadly needed glasses from a young age and shared a table close to the board in the classroom. I did ask Melissa why we needed to do this still, seeing as we could now both see!
During a sleepover at mine, Melissa introduced me to "Ace Ventura: When Nature Calls," which became a quick favourite. We also spent time in my front garden trying to come up with plans to build some kind of house for my guinea pigs, Rosie and Bella. And when a guinea pig got loose in the front garden, who was I to call to come to the rescue? Melissa.
One day after high school, we both decided to get ice cream. We innocently got ice cream cones, which resulted in the both of us (slow eaters) leaning over a street bin as the ice cream melted down and trying to avoid it going all over our hands and uniforms. This was a particularly traumatic event for me as I get stressed even at the thought of melted ice cream.
I once has this great idea and Melissa appeared at my house one night so that both of us could go for a run. I have no memory of this so-called "running" activity and I do not recall any further "running sessions".
Photo Credit: Libby Crozier's photo album
It seems that fairy parties were all the rage!
Left: My fairy birthday party. The little girl with her arm up is Mel
Right: Our friend Christine's fairy party. Mel is on the middle left, myself on the top right
A NEW DIRECTION
Melissa wanted to do something different. She sat musing one morning sitting at at the picnic bench where our friends used to meet before school. Her eyes were far away in the distance. She confided in me that she wanted to be a model. Shortly after, she was signed with a top Australian modelling agency!
During VCE (the Victorian Certificate of Education), Melissa like myself pursued science subjects. On completion of year 12, she received an offer from The University of Melbourne to study a Bachelor of Science. This place was deferred temporarily to see what could come of her modelling career. In the end, she allowed this place to lapse as her career continued to grow.
Working in the modelling world also means developing a thick skin. Behind the glamour, beautiful clothing and make up, models are also constantly criticised for some part of their appearance that they often may not even have any control over. On the other hand, it is something that can help a young woman to develop their confidence and self-esteem.
This career in modelling afforded Melissa many opportunities not only in Australia but overseas. The prospect of travel had also been one of the appeals of modelling and she took advantage of it. I remember receiving email updates of Melissa's adventures, particularly one describing discovering a massive snail on the fence outside her model apartment, well aware of my rather unique life-long phobia.
FALLING IN LOVE
It was when Melissa was working in Singapore that she met fellow model, Louis Lay.
Photo Credit: Provided
A couple shot for Shangri-La
Melissa met Louis Lay at a birthday party in Singapore. The birthday boy had been trying to get the both of them together for quite some time prior to this. He saw them as a good match. Melissa of course was completely unaware of this.
When they got talking, Melissa thought Louis was American due to his accent... this was
until she heard him speaking fluent French to another guest. She was confused and bewildered! Mel asked if he was French Canadian as that would explain his accent. "No," was the answer. It turned out that Louis was actually French. He had been born in France but had left at the age of nine and was now a naturalised Canadian.
After the party, both of them accompanied a mutual friend to a bus depot. Not wishing to part, they continued walking and talking together. This turned into hours.
"I had an overwhelming feeling that it was like time had actually stopped completely".
Admitting to being somewhat unsure about this new guy she liked, she wondered, "what if he's the "jock" type?"
The first proper date occurred at "Timbre," where patrons could text requests to a live band. Knowing Melissa absolutely hated Justin Bieber, Louis naturally texted his request... "Baby". What a way to get to a girl's heart!
Melissa and Louis shared the experience of being Eurasian and the uniqueness of this, which can only be understood by others like themselves . Their mothers were of Asian heritage and their fathers Caucasian; Melissa being German and Chinese and Louis, Chinese and French.
Melissa says that their mothers had certain expectations that would have originated from their Asian background and had grown up with the same restrictions/influences. Both of them had had widely travelled, had the desire of exploring the world, and bonded over their love of diving.
Melissa's parents had moved to Singapore to be closer to their daughter awhile earlier. They lived there for three years after her dad was able to get a work contract. Not long after meeting each other, Mel invited friends around to use the spa in her parents' complex on Orchid Street, including Louis. Some of them decided to shower downstairs but Louis and a couple of others followed Mel upstairs. Walking into the apartment, Louis awkwardly ran into Irene, Melissa's mother for the first time.
Later that night, Irene nudged her daughter,
"I think he likes you!"
Officially becoming a couple in 2012, Melissa returned to Australia twice that year, the second Louis coming along for the second, where they stayed with her parents.
The first time I met Louis was when I was invited to a dinner at her parents' house. Five friends from Singapore had also flown into Melbourne. Louis had cooked an amazing roast for us! I gave my seal of approval then and there! Like, how could I not?
Melissa has primarily been a musician even from the time we were little girls. Therefore, she saw herself retiring from modelling to pursue her true passions.
Melissa really wanted to retire from modelling but she did not wish to be without Louis. He has landed a job in Thailand. Following her heart, Melissa went to Thailand along with him and signed with an agency. They were in Bangkok for six months. They also went to Singapore and Bali on contract.
Photo Credits: Melissa Riemer
I do not know how many times Melissa and Louis have actually been married for work
"BUT WHERE DO WE LIVE?"
MOVING TO CANADA
Louis had moved around a lot and had "grown up everywhere". It was not difficult for him to live in different countries. In order to remain together and make this relationship work, they needed to decide where they both could live and work. Melissa wanted somewhere that was familiar to her and so they considered a few cities: Sydney, London, Toronto, and Vancouver.
Eventually, the decision was Toronto. During the decision-making, Melissa wanted to be closer to New York City and visit often. However, NYC was not as close as she imagined to Toronto. Toronto also proved itself to be wild and chilly- much too cold for the Aussie girl who had grown up by the bayside suburbs of Melbourne, only a stone's throw from the beach. She was shocked. In addition, the standards of living was drastically different. Melissa worked in retail for two weeks to try to immerse herself more. The salaries were not what she was used to. They were much lower. She describes Toronto as being an exciting city to live in but unfortunately, it was not compatible with them climate-wise.
The decision was made to remain in Canada but to relocate to a warmer climate. They packed up all their belongings and moved to Vancouver. Melissa describes their new hometown as beautiful but lacking in terms of nightlife and does not have the excitement of Toronto. She feels that it celebrates a culture of yoga, organic smoothies, and wearing a lot of Lululemon.
It sounds an awful lot like Melbourne to be honest.
Over the years, Melissa has returned to Australia from time to time, often making stops in Asia during time. Due to my own travels, I have not always been around. I have taught some VERY important French words, such as esécureuil (actually turns out to be one of the most difficult words to pronounce) and hérisson. One time, I cheekily tried to teach Melissa some French phrases to tell Louis. Unfortunately... or fortunately, she accidentally replaced one word for another and Louis was left wondering "what on earth?!"
Photo credit: Provided
NAVIGATING THE DISTANCE
Despite coming from a close-knit family, being homesick was not an issue for Melissa. The amount of times spent out of Australia modelling beginning in her teenage years made it much easier to be away from home. When seeing her family, it is always an extended stay and they spend quality time together making the most of it.
That was until Covid-19...
Until the pandemic, Melissa felt that she could simply board a flight and be back in Melbourne with her family. They could also come and visit when they had time.
This of course all changed, and for the first time, she found herself really struggling being apart. There was no choice as it had been completely been taken away. Louis' parents also now live in France so it was complicated for everyone. Melissa's older sister, Salina who is also in Canada with her own family, was married and having a baby during the pandemic. It had been difficult to even see her sister in the same country.
* Melbourne was famous for the lockdowns and this had also affected me greatly in France in terms of being able to return to Australia, as an Australian.
Post-pandemic, Melissa and Louis spend more time in Europe and visiting Lou's parents near Paris.
What about in general?
Melissa thinks about what it would be like if she had remained in Australia.
Sure she says, it would be lovely to be able to easily go over to her parents' house for weekly Sunday dinners, and spend time sewing with her mum (who also has helped me to show me how to use my sewing machine properly and start sewing a dress together!) but this is how life has turned out. So with that, Louis and Melissa are satisfied with what choices have been made.
On the subject of sewing, Melissa mentions having a sewing machine in Vancouver. She makes pieces for herself based on what her mum taught her over the years starting from when she was a young girl. She has made skirts, shirts, and even gym gear.
TAKING VOWS
Photo Credit: Melissa Riemer
Their elopement ceremony
During their work modelling, Melissa and Louis had been "married" on multiple occasions in photoshoots together. I am not even sure that either of them would be able to name the number of times. I have seen many a wedding photo of the two of them during the course of years.
Melissa describes their marriage as an elopement. Only two weeks were spent planning it and she did not even want so much as a cake. It was a small and quiet affair- neither sets of parents were present. Ultimately, the couple just needed to be able to remain together. A wonderful surprise was that Mallory Jansen who is Melissa's best friend was flown in as she was living and working in the US.
Both Melissa and Louis feel that weddings are an opportunity for the couple being married to be the centre of attention for a day. This is what a lot of couples want but this was simply not desired in the least by either one of them.
The industry they chose to work in meant that they were constantly the centre of attention and they did not need this part in order to prove to anybody the love they had for each other.
Melissa states that not everyone dreams about getting married, wearing a big, white dress, and getting dolled up in make up. This is something that I can definitely relate to. There is not always this desire to be like everyone else and do what is expected by society. Additionally, as long as I have known Melissa, she has always expressed not wanting children.
It has now been over a decade since Melissa and Louis first met and started dating. Melissa says that communication was truly key to making it work and the ability to grow as a couple. I know she means figuratively but having been together so long, they have literally grown up together.
There was a lot of luck but involved a lot of work too, especially being an international couple. This makes everything more complicated. But unlike many international couples, they both have left their countries of origin and their families. From my personal experience of international romance, at least one has to make the sacrifice of leaving everything to be together.
OTHER TALENTS
When Melissa was considering her retirement from modelling, she was wishing to return to university. If she had followed through with studying science, Melissa sees herself as working as a pathologist, most likely within the field of infectious diseases. Although at one stage of her life, university had been part of the plan for later, there are no regrets about instead aspire to a having a life in the creative field.
Louis enjoys photography and evidently has talent for it, often taking beautiful shots of his now wife. Louis primarily does headshots and Melissa states that she would not want anyone else but him to take them for her. But "acting is Louis' bread and butter," says Melissa. He loves it and is his main pursuit. Melissa has tried her hand at acting too and enrolled in classes. Following this, she has been in various TV shows and films. A few years ago, I watched an episode of "Untold Stories of the ER," where Melissa plays a doctor. It is not a TV serious to be taken seriously and I was in hysterics.
Although she found acting enjoyable, music and composing her own work is where Melissa wants to spend her time. Whilst Louis' love is acting, Mel's passion is music.
MUSIC
Although primarily pursuing one domain, it did not mean that she was neglecting her other passions. Melissa is known musically as "Isla Noir" (please see links below).
Melissa laughs and tells me something that I never knew. At one stage, her parents were in a band together called, "The Boys and Girls". Perhaps this is where Melissa gets it from!
An original song by Melissa,"Hawkmen" was released in 2011, whilst Melissa was still modelling.
The music video to follow was filmed in and around Melbourne. Networking has also been key to the success that both Melissa and Louis have found in the creative field. Due to those connections and friendships that had been built over time, there were many who were involved in the process. Unfortunately, I missed the celebrations as I was in Paris at the time the music video was released.
Mel's music has been featured on various TV shows including a Spike Lee series on Netflix. Each time that her music is used, Melissa also receives some royalties, which shows appreciation for her work.
Video credit: Youtube @islanoir
"Hawkmen," an original song written and performed by Melissa as Isla Noir
WRITING
When we were in high school, Melissa suggested to our group that it would be fun to film something together. She had written a script, which she wanted to film but none of our friends wanted to do it... except me! I had thought that it would have been fun to do. I have always loved theatre, film, and anything creative. Sadly, the obvious lack of interest from the others meant that the idea fell by the wayside.
Years later, Melissa was looking at pursuing other endeavours besides modelling. It was an easy decision. Melissa took a six week screenwriting course. What was there to lose?
Writing came naturally to her and her talent for it was acknowledged in a "Landed Entertainment" competition, where she found her script placed in the Top 50. Then in the Top 5.
Melissa welcomes diversity in interpretations by the actors when they are working on her scripts and making her stories come to life. During a table read, she enjoys the actors asking questions directly about the characters and the scenes.
ENCOURAGEMENT
When we were chatting over video, I had mentioned that a short story of mine had been selected for publication in a book. Melissa was very quick to congratulate me but I did express my hesitance to have something rather personal made available to a wider audience.
As always, Melissa encouraged me by stating:
"Libby, we are much too old to care what other people think of us".
I feel that over the years, I have been supportive of Melissa as she has definitely been with me, even in difficult times. Despite the years we do not see each other and the distance, we are in rather frequent contact. At the end of the day, we have also known each other since we were 5 years old. No matter what happens i our lives, we will both remain friends regardless of how many years pass before we see each other next.
Today, Melissa and Louis live in Vancouver. There are no future plans to extend their family by having children. Melissa has always had a love of rabbits. Currently, they have two beautiful black rabbits who she says are their children.
LINKS TO MELISSA'S WORK:
Instagram: @islanoir
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/islanoir
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@IslaNoir
Spotify: Isla Noir
Neumer (Melissa's website, blog, portfolio, brand): https://www.neumertribe.com/