THE STORY 

ELISSA is a short film about a teenage deaf girl, Elissa, who lives in small town. Written in the horror supernatural thriller genre, Elissa is viewed as a local outcast. She has a dark side and a special power that she is unaware of. Odd visions and clues lead her to find the answer to it all. 

WHY YOU SHOULD CARE

"Elissa" will be a unique short film that will be completely accessible to the deaf & hearing audiences. American Sign Language (along with spoken English) will be used in the finished film. We have an excellent cast & crew - including Amber Zion as "Elissa," alongside Gabriel Jarrett, Devon Nunally & Michael Covert. 

We've been told by active professionals in the entertainment industry that this story has the makings of a high-budget Hollywood film. Even though this is a thesis film from Columbia College Hollywood, it will not look like a student film in the end. 

We will have a mixed crew of the deaf and hearing, and it will be a great opportunity for people to learn how to work with deaf people, and vice versa. It will contribute to the spirit of "Elissa" and will generate a great experience and develop learning tools for industry professionals, both deaf and hearing. 

This film will be submitted to film festivals and be spread throughout the world to all audiences.  

WHAT WE NEED & WHAT YOU GET 

We need $5,000 for equipment rental, food for the cast & crew for a 5-day shoot, post production - editing, special effects (green screen work). 

Helping us raise this much money will help us create a professional-looking film and it will be empowering to the deaf and hard of hearing community should you decide to help us.  

If you donate money, check the VIP PERKS on the right column of this page to see what you get for various amounts of money.  

HOW ELSE CAN YOU HELP?

You can twitter about us, share our links on Facebook, and help us find people who have a love for horror films and deaf-related movies, if you can't help donate to this film. Your word of mouth will be a huge contribution for this film.  

CREW BIOS 

WRITER & DIRECTOR 

Martha Anger, now living in Tarzana, California, hails from Austin, TX and currently attends the Columbia College - Hollywood, a film school known for it's successful career placement of its students. Martha currently majors in film directing and her utmost passion is to become an A-list director. An undergraduate transferred from the Rochester Institute of Technology in in New Media, she's been heavily involved on film sets as part of a team, even though she has not graduated yet. She now lives in Tarzana, California, with her German Shepherd/Chow Chow/Wolf combined dog, Gwennie. 

CINEMATOGRAPHER

Jules Dameron earned a Masters degree in Film Production from the University of Southern California. In addition to her love for directing, she has produced several short films, such as Edie & Pokey & Kit, Growing Up Vegas, The Deaf Man, Glee!, Night Sky, Beyond Essays, Goggles and numerous other shorts. 

Jules is also an avid supporter of all who are frequent users of American Sign Language, particularly in the film and arts industry. Jules has been recognized as one of the The Pearls of The M Projects. The Pearls is an event that recognizes 20 Deaf Women from all over America who have outstanding achievements. 

Hailing from Minnesota, she extends a friendly demeanor towards all she works with. Jules pursues her abiding love for directing films, having directed a large number of short films. She has additionally directed a few short plays for Deaf West Theatre and pursues acting. In addition to being the founder of Deaf Women in Film, Jules is the CEO of her film production company, Damname Productions. She resides with her husband and three cats in North Hollywood. 

ACTRESS AS "ELISSA" 

Amber Zion was born and raised in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and is an only child. She developed a strong passion for acting at age of 5 and has been involved in many school plays. An accomplished stage actor, Amber has appeared in numerous productions at NTID's (National Technical Institute for the Deaf) Panara Theater. Her professional debut was Shakespeare's "The Tempest" off Broadway at the Interborough Repertory Theatre in New York City in the summer of 2000. 

Amber was filmed in a feature: "One By One: Death's Door," directed by Kimberly Seilhamer. Her other professional film works include the Mosdeux Productions: "Till Domestic Violence Do Us Part 1 & 2", "Vital Signs" and "Resonare." Amber recently made her debut in national commercials. She worked on the Kay Jeweler's Christmas 2008 campaign. She also had a guest starring role on CBS's CSI:NY in the episode "Silent Night" on network television in 2006. 

Amber is certified by NTID in performing arts and has attended Deaf West Professional Summer School. She also holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in Graphic Design from Rochester Institute of Technology.