Ermela Teli was born in Tirana, Albania, and has been living in Switzerland since 2016. She completed her theatre studies at the Academy of Arts in 2004 and earned an MA in Film and Television Directing in 2015. Ermela began her artistic career at the age of 18, starring in the film Tirana Year Zero, which represented Albania at the 58th Venice International Film Festival.

She has appeared in numerous film productions and spent eight years as an actress with the National Theatre of Albania. In 2009, Ermela transitioned to directing, using her work to explore themes of personal and collective memory, history, and politics through film, documentary, photography, sound, and installation art. Her films and artworks have been featured at various international film festivals and museums of contemporary art.