Paterniti was born in 1987 and grew up in Perth, Western Australia with two other siblings. She became involved with dramatic arts from an early age, and at the age of 13 enrolled at the John Curtin College of the Arts, a high school in Fremantle, Western Australia. Following her graduation from the college, Paterniti furthered her studies at Curtin University, where she performed in many theatrical productions including Romeo and Juliet, Cloudstreet and The Trojan Women. While still attending the university, she appeared in a short film Some Dreams Come True, and was cast in the children's television series' Wormwood, and Stormworld, an Australian-Canadian sci-fi series.