Tanner Christensen is a filmmaker in his directorial debut with the new film, “Standout: The Ben Kjar Story.” The documentary film follows the life of Ben Kjar who was born with Crouzon Syndrome, a genetic disorder that causes abnormalities in skull growth.
“The mid part of the face doesn't grow at the same speed and there's other parts of the head are just going to be abnormal,” Kjar said. “And so, during the growth stages, they would cut my head open from ear to ear, put a trach in my throat, wire my mouth shut and hope and pray that the surgery would actually work.”
In addition to the physical trials Kjar faced with childhood surgeries, in his adolescence he encountered cruelty and judgment for being different than others.
“If you fast forward to today, it's totally different,” Kjar said. “My Crouzon Syndrome isn't a curse, it's a gift. It's an opportunity to have empathy towards other people. It's an opportunity to prove who I am. It's an opportunity to be somebody. It's an opportunity to stand out.”
Through hard work and determination Kjar excelled at wrestling, becoming a three-time state champion, NCAA Division I All-American wrestler and eventually competing internationally where he became world champion. Kjar now shares his story of overcoming obstacles as a motivational speaker.
Kjar’s highs and lows are all seen in “Standout: The Ben Kjar Story.”
“This is a story about people embracing their differences and being able to come together and have empathy for one another,” Christensen said.
Christensen said he knew about Kjar for decades and has watched his inspirational story play out in real life. They are from the same town in Utah. Christensen remembers his dad — filmmaker T.C. Christensen — telling him Kjar’s story would make a good movie one day. It took years for it to happen, but it finally did.
“His story would have been, would have been great 20 years ago too, but it’s even more so now,” Christensen said, “and I just feel so blessed that I get the opportunity to be the one to tell it.”
During the preparation process before making the film, Kjar and the crew were looking for a young boy with Crouzon Syndrome to play the role of young Kjar. They had looked for months without any success. Weeks before filming began, Kjar received a message on social media from the Fielding family. They invited him over for dinner. They lived just 20 minutes away.
“I walk in, and I see Jordan and Anneli Fielding, and there I see Colton,” Kjar said. “I nervously tell them and ask them if they’d be open for this. And in that moment, I hear, like, emotional response. This makes sense.
Colton was picked to play Kjar in the documentary. Kjar said it was a miracle because Colton had been scheduled to have surgery that would have changed his looks, and the surgery fell through until after filming.
“God is so good. This is way bigger than us,” Kjar said.
In a tie to Idaho, Colton’s grandparents, the Wilcox family, live in Rexburg. They told the Rexburg Standard Journal how excited they are for their grandson to be in the film.
“Standout: The Ben Kjar Story” is now in theaters. Information on showtimes and locations can be found at www.standoutfilm.com