Mandy: One of your movies in post-production is Piranhaconda<\/a>, what was that like to make, I assume there was a great deal of special effects involved?<\/strong><\/p>\n Kurt:<\/strong> That project was an amazingly unique experience. We filmed in Hawaii when the Japanese Tsunami hit, had to shut down production and get to high ground. When that was all finished we were off schedule, tired from sleeping in the parking lot of an evacuation center and the chaos of the island trying to find normalcy stunted filming. A day later, a van with several members of the crew was in a freak accident when the brakes didn\u2019t work and flipped over nearly going off a cliff. And to top it all off I drank whiskey all day and night with Michael Madsen. I guess the word \u201cunique\u201d is an understatement.<\/p>\n Mandy: Out of all the movies that you have done recently, what was your favorite to work on and why?<\/strong><\/p>\n Kurt:<\/strong> Dolphin Tale,<\/a> hands down. The film is so inspiring, so good natured and based upon the true story of Winter, the dolphin who lost her tail in a crab trap line. I\u2019ve been to several screenings of the film, doing the press rounds, and I cry every time. I see this adorable little girl who\u2019s missing a leg in a wheelchair say a line \u201clook mommy, she\u2019s (Winter) just like me\u201d. It\u2019s heart wrenching and overwhelmingly inspiring. A must see.<\/p>\n Mandy: What is your favorite part of being an actor? Least favorite?<\/strong><\/p>\n Kurt:<\/strong> My favorite part of being an actor is a little different for me than most people, I think. I grew up in a rougher part of where I\u2019m from, one of the few white kids in school. I learned to grow up fast, drugs were available and fights were normal life. I wasn\u2019t allowed to have a significant relationship with the emotional side of myself and acting has bridged that gap. It has allowed a safe environment for me to explore that hidden, tucked away self.<\/p>\n The least favorite has to be the depression that follows when I\u2019m done filming. You\u2019ve made friends on the set that you may never see again. You leave the enjoyment of being needed behind and re-enter normal life. Sometimes you just miss having fun and acting like a goof with great people. It\u2019s what drives me to get more work.<\/p>\n Mandy: If you could work with one actor\/actress\/director living or dead, who would it be and why?<\/strong><\/p>\n Kurt:<\/strong> Daniel Day Lewis \u2013 because he seems like he could give a shit about all of the superficial musings of this technological age. He just performs and leaves the rest to the rest of us.<\/p>\n Mandy: What are your thoughts on shows like “Glee”? Glee has been slammed in the past for hiring an actor to play a teenager who is handicapped but at the same time they also employ an actress with Down Syndrome?<\/strong><\/p>\n Kurt:<\/strong> Glee didn\u2019t do anything wrong by hiring an able bodied person to play a disabled character, as long as they auditioned disabled actors who fit the character descriptions, which I\u2019ve been assured by the casting director they did and I believe him. Every show should always hire the best actor for the role, no matter what.<\/p>\n Before I get to the problem let me first be very clear, it sickens and enrages me to see the hypocrisy of many in Hollywood. Many do not practice what they preach. The problem is this \u2013 you have a role for a 45 year old, salty haired man with a low raspy voice, and he\u2019s going to play a judge in a courtroom. Casting will not see a person in a wheelchair for the role because that\u2019s not in the character description. Since when is a wheelchair a character trait, it\u2019s not, it\u2019s a mode of transportation. And since when is it considered that a wheelchair user can\u2019t be a judge? And yet they won\u2019t even give the actor, who uses a wheelchair the opportunity to get gainful employment. They write him\/her off before the actor even gets a shot and by the way it\u2019s against the law, yet no one fights it because everyone is afraid to loose work over fighting for the rights of the most innocent. Money triumphs morality in Hollywood and don\u2019t let anyone tell you any different.<\/p>\n I do, however, want to defend casting directors. I\u2019m not knocking them specifically. They get work like an actor. They\u2019re hired by a production company or studio\/network to cast their projects. If they bring in people that aren\u2019t exactly what those entities asked for, well, they will be fired and replaced by someone who will. So it\u2019s not casting director\u2019s fault exclusively, but it\u2019s the system that lets the most underrepresented group in America go unnoticed, while crushing the dreams of hundreds of disabled actors.<\/p>\n Mandy: You’ve worked with several organizations\/charities regarding actors with disabilities, do you feel Hollywood has changed at all in regards to their attitude towards those with disabilities?<\/strong><\/p>\n Kurt:<\/strong> Nope. But I\u2019m going to do my damndest to change it.<\/p>\n Mandy: What is one change you would like to see?<\/strong><\/p>\n Kurt:<\/strong> Actors with disabilities getting a fair shot at auditions to play able bodied characters. Of course outside of a role that requires a certain amount of physical prowess. Something like a firefighter carrying two people on his back down a flight of stairs, you know. I understand that.<\/p>\n I\u2019m not for equal outcome, I think those policies hurt more than they help but I am for equal opportunities.<\/p>\n Kurt:<\/strong> Yup. I still ride; still do back flips over jumps, even with one leg. I was in the last two years of X-Games. In fact, I have a new video coming out of me riding for the ESPN web page. It\u2019s going to be very exciting and there are some pretty rough crashes in it where I took some major hits. Nearly broke my legs in one. But, whatever, you know, it\u2019s worth it.<\/p>\n Mandy: What would be your dream role be?<\/strong><\/p>\n Kurt:<\/strong> A nice long series regular on a hit show where I get to play a rough and tumble guy who\u2019s discovering life\u2019s peaks and valleys while sending a good message to people in TV land which would be \u2013 honorable, say what you mean and mean what you say, and be generous because you can\u2019t take it with you.<\/p>\n Mandy: Tell me about the films you have coming out and the one at Cannes.<\/strong><\/p>\n Kurt:<\/strong> The one that just came out is Dolphin Tale. It\u2019s an amazing film about the true story of a dolphin named Winter who was rescued on a beach after being entangled in a crab trap. The little girl was nursed back to health but had to have her tail removed because it was too damaged. Winter really plays herself in the film and she is an amazing little girl!<\/p>\n The one that played at Cannes, which will be coming out soon, is called War Flowers with Christina Ricci, Jason Gedrick and Tom Berenger. It\u2019s a story about the struggles of a woman dealing with the ravages of the civil war while trying to take care of her daughter and keep her out of harms way from corrupt people who try to take what they can.<\/p>\n Mandy: You recently did a big celebrity event for Cerebral Palsy in New York and spoke with Ivanka Trump, the President of Chile, Robin Givens and more. How did you get involved in the event? What were the highlights for you?<\/p>\n Kurt:<\/strong> I can\u2019t say enough good things about James Grant and his PR firm. Those guys who organized this event made it such a great experience for everyone. The event was a hit and the highlight for me was standing on stage talking candidly to seven hundred or so of some of the most powerful people in New York. Sort of gave me a thrill to have them all listen to me.<\/p>\n Mandy: You inspire many people… who is it that inspires you?<\/strong><\/p>\n Kurt:<\/strong> I know this sounds cheesy and I don\u2019t care. My father is my hero. If I can be half the man he is, I\u2019ll be doing pretty good.<\/p>\n You can check out Kurt’s Officially Plugged in website here<\/a>. He’s also on IMDb here<\/a> and his official website is here<\/a>.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"http:\/\/www.officiallypluggedin.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/11\/Kurt_Ystandingjennyshotb.jpg\" "\\"Kurt_Ystandingjennyshotb\\"")
<\/a>Kurt:<\/strong> You know, I don\u2019t really have a preference. I\u2019m game as long as it\u2019s an interesting story, a good script and people I\u2019d like to work with. I do have a lot of fun on creature features and comedy projects because you get to act like a fool and are encouraged to go even further.<\/p>\n<\/a>Mandy: Prior to your accident you were a BMX rider, I know you have said acting is your passion but do you still ride?<\/strong><\/p>\n