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Every girl dreams of growing up to be someone special, and for Santina Muha, she was no different. When she became paralyzed at the age of 5 in a car accident, this New Jersey girl had to take on life as a wheelchair-user. Santina however hasn’t been phased one bit. A writer, actress, comedian and advocate, learn all about the fabulous Santina Muha below.
Why She’s Fearless
Santina Muha has led quite the exciting life. Growing up in New Jersey, she went on to attend Rutgers University, graduating with a degree in Communications. Communicating has been the focus of her career. In 2009, she became Miss Wheelchair New Jersey, and in 2011, she was featured in a documentary about the Miss Wheelchair America pageant, Defining Beauty. She also collaborated with spinal cord injured rapper Professir X, teaming up with him for CNN iReport series and creating reports on important stories in the disability community.
Santina’s career however really began to grow in 2012 when she made the decision to move to LA to focus on her comedy and acting. After landing a job with HelloGiggles.com before arriving, creating content for positive women, she gave her first comedy monologue at the legendary Upright Citizens Brigade within a year. Next, she became a official performer with them in 2015, and helped make the United Citizens Brigade theater in LA fully accessible.
She was able to next snag own role in Don’t Worry, He Won’t Get Far on Foot in 2018 (a film starring Joaquin phoenix about a real life quadriplegic comic). And since, she has been in several movies and TV shows. She was a regular on Netflix’s One Day at a Time, playing “Beth.” She’s also been in Curb Your Enthusiasm, The Fugitive TV series and The Inside Job TV series.
What’s Next?
In 2019, Santina created her own film, Take it Back, which she co-wrote, co-produced and starred in. She was nominated for best film in the 2019 Easterseals Disability film challenge. Set in the year 2030, the film followed a woman who traveled back in time to prevent the accident that left her paralyzed.
Since Santina has arrived in Hollywood, the landscape has changed a lot for actors with disabilities, and she is there to reap the benefits. She just finished a role in the film Izzy Lyon: The Unspun Truth, and she had a role in the TV series Immoral Compass in 2021. Hulu’s Dollface is just one more series she appeared in, playing “Sky.” And to hear her voice on a regular basis, she hosts a podcast, Rollin’ with My Homies.
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