Estimated read time: 5-6 minutes
In theaters nationwide this weekend
Some lives defy probability. Ben Kjar's life defies it repeatedly.
The new feature film "STANDOUT: The Ben Kjar Story," winner of the 2025 Slamdance Film Festival and opening nationwide in theaters this weekend, chronicles a journey defined by rarity at every turn.
Born with an extremely rare medical condition, he reached rare athletic and personal achievements that redefined his future. Kjar's story forces audiences to reconsider what's possible when someone refuses to accept limitations.
A rare beginning
Born with Crouzon syndrome, Ben Kjar entered the world with odds stacked impossibly high against him. For Ben, this meant multiple reconstructive surgeries throughout childhood just to accommodate his growing brain. Doctors prepared his parents for a life of limitations. They were right that Ben's life would be different — but could never predict the many ways Ben would absolutely "STANDOUT."
Director Tanner Christensen's film doesn't shy away from the brutal realities of Kjar's early years. The medical interventions. The endless recovery periods. The physical pain that, as difficult as it was, couldn't compare to the cruelty of others.
One scene captures this perfectly. Young Ben had saved 100 pennies over two weeks to buy a Twix bar. At the grocery store checkout, an adult stranger used the boy as a teaching moment for his own children, mocking Ben's appearance and warning them not to touch him because he was "probably contagious." Ben ran home, crushed the candy bar in despair, and locked himself in the bathroom trying desperately to figure out how to remove his own face.
The turning point
What happened next changed everything. Ben's mother found him sobbing and delivered seven words that became his operating system.
"Ben, you're born different to make a difference." People would stare regardless, she told him. The attention was inevitable. The only question was what he'd do with that visibility. "Don't hide from it," she said. "Take hold of it — and stand out." Those words set Kjar on a path toward achievements so rare they seem almost fictional.
Rare excellence on the mat
Wrestling became Kjar's proving ground, a sport where there's nowhere to hide and no one to blame. Just you, an opponent, and the unforgiving honesty of competition.
Becoming a state champion wrestler is rare enough. According to wrestling statistics, less than 0.5% of high school wrestlers ever claim a state title. Winning three state championships is far less common.
But Kjar called his shot with audacious confidence.
As a sophomore, before winning anything, he bought a patch reading "3XSC" for his letterman jacket — a public declaration that he would become a three-time state champion. That bold prediction became reality.
At Utah Valley University, Kjar became the school's first NCAA Division I All-American wrestler. Out of thousands of Division I wrestlers nationwide, fewer than 100 earn this honor each year.
Kjar didn't stop there. He competed internationally for Team USA and captured a world championship — reaching the absolute pinnacle of his sport.
For someone with Crouzon syndrome to become a state champion is rare. To become a three-time state champion is extraordinarily rare. To become an NCAA All-American and world champion is statistically improbable to the point of seeming impossible.
Yet Ben Kjar did it all.
The philosophy behind the achievement
What makes "STANDOUT" more than just an inspirational sports story is its honest examination of how Kjar built his mindset. This isn't a highlight reel that ignores struggle — Christensen deliberately includes the doubts, defeats, and moments of genuine vulnerability.
Kjar developed what he calls "disobedience to average." "If everyone does what's asked, that's average," he explains in the film. "To stand out, you have to do more."
This philosophy extends beyond athletics. Kjar built a successful real estate career and transformed into an internationally sought-after motivational speaker, delivering his message to hundreds of thousands of people worldwide.
The core of his teaching centers on perspective — the shift from victim to victor thinking. "The victim says, 'Life is happening to me,'" Kjar reflects. "The victor says, 'Life is happening for me.' Same pain. Same trial. A totally different lens."
A mirror for audiences
"STANDOUT" does something rare in modern cinema: it creates a mirror that forces viewers to examine their own excuses.
If someone facing the challenges Kjar faced can achieve what he achieved, what's really holding others back? The film poses an uncomfortable question that lingers long after the credits: What would your life look like if you stopped trying to fit in and started choosing to stand out?
Christensen offers no easy formulas or simple solutions. What he delivers instead is something more valuable — unguarded honesty about the cost of excellence and an unflinching look at how resilience is constructed one painful step at a time.
Standing out
Ben Kjar's mother told him he was born different to make a difference. Watching "STANDOUT," it's clear he took those words to heart.
In a world of rare medical conditions, rare athletic achievements, and rare courage to transform pain into purpose, Ben Kjar might be the rarest thing of all: Someone who actually lived up to his impossible potential.
"STANDOUT: The Ben Kjar Story" is more than a documentary about overcoming obstacles. It's a challenge to anyone watching to reconsider what they're capable of when they refuse to accept other people's limitations as their own reality.
See it this weekend. Tickets are available at https://standoutfilm.com/.
