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Kristian Schmid is appearing on the Channel 7 show Packed to the Rafters for six weeks.
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Kristian plays the role of Alex in Packed to the Rafters. He has cerebtal palsy and is the brother of Jake, the electrician.
Jake is Rachael's new boyfriend and both Alex and his mother confront Rachael in different ways.
Sunday Daily Telegraph Article by Richard Clune.
SEA Patrol's Kristian Schmid recently returned to civvies to film a six-part guest role for Seven's Packed To The
Rafters from this week (Tuesday, 8.30pm).
Schmid debuts as Jake's (James Stewart) brother Alex, who suffers from cerebral
palsy.
"The function of the character is not just to explore what it's like to have cerebral palsy but to show how
it affects the people around him,'' Schmid explains.
"It raises questions for Jess Marais' character (who is seeing
Jake) and how she deals with it.''
While Sea Patrol actors Jay Ryan, Jeremy Lindsay Taylor and Saskia Burmeister have
left the series, Schmid confirms that he will set sail on the program's next voyage, which starts filming in and around Mission
Beach this month.
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Magazine Interview:
Vanessa Santer talks with Kristian Schmid about his role on Packed to the Rafters.
Q Are you on set at the moment?
I'm about to start work on Sea Patrol (where he has a recurrent
role) in September. We film in far north Queensland. I take my family with me, but we’re in Sydney otherwise.
Q You had such an iconic role on Neighbours. Do you still
get recognised as Todd?
It’s a
strange one. Yes I do, but also Neighbours was associated at the time with growing up and was a really positive
time in life for people. So I get a lot of “did I go to school with you?” or “did you go to this whatever?”
Sometimes I say yeah, sometimes I say no, it depends on what sort of mood I'm in.
Q Yours was surely one of the best deaths ever on a soap opera. Was it a good way
to gout of Neighbours?
It
was very traumatic for many people. Being hit by a van is pretty good – it’d have to be up there.
Q Were you a fan of Packed to the Rafters before scoring
the role?
Yeah, I think it’s a
great show. I watched the first series and there are very talented people working on the show. To be honest, I'm a big fan
of all the new Australian dramas. I think they’ve cast it (Rafters) really well with people who like working
with each other, so there's a bit of magic there and it’s really good writing. It looks at interesting issues without
getting too heavy and dark.
Q You
play a character with cerebral palsy in Packed. How challenging was that?
Look, it’s interesting because normally you’re just focused
on the acting and hitting the right emotional keys, but when you're playing someone with any sort of disability or physical
trait there's something else to think about. After talking to people with CP, it’s about muscle spasms that you don't
have a lot of control over. I'm generalising, but usually they have to concentrate extremely hard to control any twitches.
There are so many things going on you get a similar look of concentration.
Q Why acting?
It changes all the time, but the easy answer is because I can. I truly like telling stories and there's an
element of me that likes to be the centre of attention. And it’s a great that as a male you get to embrace a lot of
the emotional side of your like that some others may hide away. I get to play for a living. I don't consider it work; I really
enjoy what I do. When I'm doing 14-hour days that’s something to rejoice in.
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