Impetus

Synopsis: The story of Irina, a deaf woman harboring a deep grudge against herself while trapped in a parallel world. Growing up as an outcast, all she wants to do is be happy and fit in, but it is impossible with who she is and where she lives... so when Irina suddenly finds herself in a different, hearing body, in a different gender, where all the rules have been reversed, she realizes she has a second chance to fix all the wrongs in her life.

Director: Martina Bell - was born deaf and raised in Chicago, Illinois. At an early age, she developed her interest in acting after she was inspired by watching the famous actress, Katharine Hepburn, in her classic features. She registered to Illinois School for the Deaf to begin acting in Tiger Theater, reestablished during her junior year. There, she acted in many plays, including "Anne of the Green Gable" in which she
played the main role of Diana. She later enrolled in Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT) where she earned a bachelor of Fine Art degree in Graphic Design. During this time period, she has been involved in numerous plays, including "A Raisin in the Sun" in which she played the supporting role of Beneatha in NYC, off-broadway.
Bell moved to California to pursue an acting career in film and television. Since then, she has been involved in independent films and television such as "Titus", "Dark Thinker", and "Switched at Birth" (ABC Family). She landed the lead role of Sofie in the short film, “Sofie.” Sofie had been selected by the top black film festival, San Francisco
Black Film Festival. “Sofie” won the best short film. It is currently in the festival circuit since late spring 2017. Also, she has played the featured role of Jenny Z. in the upcoming feature, “First Crime Out.” She signed on to play a role in next feature, Harmatia in pre-production. She is fascinated in working behind the camera and has been working on a few scripts to develop them for filming. She is the co-founder of
Imageshade films, which produces work such as "Bum Rush" (Los Angeles CineFest), and "Longshot" (Empire Inland Film Festival). For her directorial debut, she has directed and acted in a thriller short film titled, "The Loved Ones" (Seattle Deaf Film Festival). She is enthralled with acting and she never stops being inspired to forge a new path of film-making and design through art and movies.