Meet the Oneaway studios team

Founder, Owner | Head of Systems & Production

Esai Salinas is an entrepreneur and musician from the Rio Grande Valley who found his passion for music, media, and marketing at an early age.

His latest passion has been pursuing videography, which is currently one of the most important assets in modern marketing to communicate with customers.

Esai has worked on the development and design of numerous brands in the United States, Europe, and Australia. Having the opportunity to work with many influencers in different niches across the world has given him insight into what is working in the online space.

His experience spans fields in both B2B and B2C such as e-commerce, real estate, medical field, weddings, music, and more.

Esai currently lives in San Antonio, Texas where he is focused on building OneAway Studios.

”My whole thesis, here at OneAway Studios, is that most people are just one actionable move away from attaining the goals they are looking to achieve.”

- Esai Salinas

Owner | Head of Client Strategy & Operations

Melissa leads client relationships, strategic project planning, and internal operations to ensure clear strategy, consistent delivery, and measurable value for clients.

As an owner-operator, Melissa oversees how our client projects move from inquiry to execution, aligning client goals with the systems, team, and resources required to deliver curated results. Her role bridges decision-making and delivery, balancing creative direction with operational clarity.

With over a decade of experience across music, media, and brand-building, Melissa brings both creative intuition and disciplined structure to her work. She holds a Bachelor’s degree in Music Marketing from The University of Texas at San Antonio, where she was classically trained in voice—experience that continues to inform her sense of timing, creativity, and execution.

Originally from Corpus Christi, Melissa now lives in San Antonio with her partner in life and business, Esai Salinas. Together, they are building OneAway Studios with a shared commitment to creativity, exceptional hospitality, and genuine connection—creating media and brand experiences designed to leave clients and the OneAway team feeling supported, valued, and confident long after the work is done.

Multimedia Specialist | Photography

Originally from Colorado Springs, Colorado, James has been a part of the OneAway Studios team since 2021. Although he pursues many endeavours, his lead passion is photography.

After obtaining his Associates degree in Journalism from San Antonio College, James is now pursuing his Bachelor’s degree in Public Relations from The University of Texas at San Antonio.

While attending San Antonio College, James interned at the Salvation Army under the guidance of the public relations director, Brad Mayhar. During his time at San Antonio College, James was also a part of San Antonio College's newspaper organization, The Ranger. Throughout his collegiate career, James has received numerous journalism awards from the Texas Intercollegiate Press Association as well as from the Texas Community College Journalism Association.

Although it was during his time at San Antonio College that James began to fall in love with photography, his time spent at home during the Pandemic allowed him to develop his genuine passion for photography.

In addition to being an integral part of the Events Team at OneAway Studios, James appreciates having the ability to apply his love for both photography and public relations to the work he creates with OneAway Studios. Through his work with OneAway Studios, his goal is to always make clients feel welcomed at events, tell a story through photography, and to capture the right moments in order to offer clients an experience to remember.

Multimedia Specialist | Social Media Management

While attending the University of Texas at San Antonio, Michelle worked as a marketing assistant for the campus, gaining hands-on experience in social media content creation, graphic design, and marketing, which led her to realize her interest in pursuing a career in a similar field. In the spring of 2023, Michelle graduated from UTSA with a degree in Digital Communications.

After completing college, Michelle worked part-time as a barista and social media manager for an indoor rock-climbing gym in San Antonio while searching for a specific niche business opportunity where she could showcase her talents and digital communications knowledge.

As luck would have it, she discovered OneAway Studios and became a part of the Social Media Team, where she assists in social media content creation and management.

In her brief time with OneAway Studios, Michelle has proven to be a reliable team member who appreciates the opportunity to apply her creative thinking to her position. She is excited and thrilled to continue to learn and grow more in the field of media with OneAway Studios.

Multimedia Specialist | Video Editor

Client Strategy Specialist