About The Film: Collision is a film made by people with disabilities (our lead actors are paraplegic, our writer has Cerebral Palsy and our director directed the award winning documentary Defining Beauty: Ms. Wheelchair America), about people with disabilities, for the world at large. We are not making a PSA or an after-school special, but a great film that will increase the visibility of and opportunities for people with disabilities in Hollywood.
Collision tells the story of JESSICA (Tiffany Giddes), a prominent Los Angeles lawyer who, after being struck by a drunk driver, finds herself in a wheelchair and must face task of putting her life back together. Not long after her injury CHARLIE (Teal Sherer), a successful bakery owner and fellow wheelchair user, mysteriously approaches Jessica. Charlie offers Jessica the opportunity to leave her dead-end rehab center and begin a rigorous training program, one sure to provide a better outcome than the one Jessica is currently facing. Jessica accepts Charlie’s offer without hesitation even with very little information given upfront. The ease of this transaction should be a red flag for both women, and it’s not long before Charlie’s ulterior motives are revealed.
Jessica soon learns that Charlie is leading a double life as an assassin, a position she’s held proudly for years, even before a mishap on the job landed her in a wheelchair. Charlie conditions Jessica into a reliable partner, even more capable than she was before her accident. Together, the women practice strategic assassination in order to uphold the balance of Good and Evil in the world.
While Charlie has a small group of supporters aware of her side career, namely her boyfriend and tech support, RHYS (Ronnie Alvarez), and her Master Assassin uncle, ANSEL, Jessica is forced to keep the weighty secret from her fiancé, BRANDON (Nigel A. Walsh), for his safety and hers.
Jessica bounces back from her injury and into a new life, only able to confide in one person, Charlie. Under such circumstances the two become more than partners, they’re each other’s life-line and best friend, but Jessica still can’t bring herself to reveal to Charlie the real reason she agreed to become an assassin – to become strong enough and smart enough to exact revenge on the man whose careless mistake changed her life forever, Steve.
After an assignment-gone-wrong, in which Jessica kills a target to save Charlie’s life, she heads to Steve’s house intent on finally pulling the trigger. It’s not until she sees Steve with his family that Jessica realizes she may be making the same mistake he did. Charlie intervenes just in time to save Steve’s life, making Jessica understand that what we do now can’t change the past, but can have a profound affect on the future.
All is well until the assassin duo faces an attempt on their own lives, carried out on behalf of Charlie’s former employers. When it comes out that both women were using the other for their own personal gain they must decide if the bond they’ve formed over the last year is strong enough to withstand an uncertain and dangerous future.
WHY WE ARE DOING THIS:
Think of this project as more than a film. Think of it as a movement away from long held stereotypes and stigmas regarding disability in Hollywood.
According to the Where Are We on TV report issued yearly by GLAAD, more than 12% of U.S. citizens report an apparent disability, making people with disabilities one of the largest minority groups in the country. Even so, less than 1% of series regular characters on broadcast networks have disabilities. In addition, only one of those actors has a known disability. (SAG.org)
Everyone deserves to see a version of themselves on screen, but for people with disabilities, the roles just aren’t there. If they are, those roles frequently go to “able bodied” actors. Furthermore, actors with disabilities are rarely given the chance to audition for “able bodied” roles.
COLLISION aims to bring a wave of change through Hollywood. Actors with disabilities have been relegated to background and bit parts for far too long. Collision, the first film to feature two female wheelchair users in leading roles, will show the world that we can play the hero.
Mainstream Hollywood needs to know that actors with disabilities are just like actors without disabilities. We work seriously on our craft and are passionate and driven. We want to be taken seriously and we want to be considered for a variety of roles, not just the “pity” or “inspirational” roles.