We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Brendan Schroeder a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Brendan , thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Can you talk to us about a project that’s meant a lot to you?

The most meaningful project I have done so far is playing a role with the character having autism. I was diagnosed with autism when I was 13 months old. I had 6 plus years of intense therapy to get to where I am at now. I wanted to get into acting because my dream was to be on tv. The first big role I booked was on Dhar Mann playing “Sam” who was on the spectrum. The role portrayed Sam who everyone thought because he had autism wasn’t smart or good at sports. But once he was given the opportunity to show his skills everyone realized autism doesn’t stop him from doing anything he wants.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

I am a boy who loves life. I started my childhood journey much different than most but even getting diagnosed with a disability I knew that wasn’t going to stop me. I had a love for music and dancing from the time I learned to walk. My older sister was a dancer so I would go to her classes and watch her. I begged my mom to let me try dance class. My mom was definitely worried knowing I wasn’t fully verbal yet and only 5 years old. From my first dance class life changed for me. Dancing brought out new words and shortly after that I started to speak in full sentences. My mom knew dancing brought a sparkle to my eyes that she loved watching. I am now currently a full time competitive dancer. I travel a lot taking classes from professional dance teachers at conventions. Dancing truly brings me so much joy.
After my first acting video I did with Dhar Mann I knew I wanted to continue to pursue acting. I have been super fortunate to act in more than 20 plus Dhar Mann videos. Dhar Mann has such a huge following of loyal fans. I remember the first time someone recognized me in public. A teenager boy came up to me and said are you the boy in Dhar Mann? My mom said wait you know who he is? We all couldn’t believe it. But it has been amazing getting to met and take pictures with so many fans over the years. Dhar Mann fans are truly the best fans ever.

Is there mission driving your creative journey?

The goal driving me is to show anyone who has a disability that you can do anything you put your mind too. Your hard work will pay off.

In your view, what can society to do to best support artists, creatives and a thriving creative ecosystem?

I love creating content on my social media platforms. It has brought so many amazing people and opportunities in my life. But unfortunately when you have success that also brings hate. My mom runs all my social media accounts because she is protecting me from all the hate and truly terrible things people comment. I am so thankful that she is doing what she can to make sure I stay safe physically and mentally. I wish society would stop the hate being a keyboard. Especially to children.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://linktr.ee/Brendanslife
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/brendanslife/profilecard/?igsh=MTZ5YTVnb2ZwNm13ZA==
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/share/15v9aNkJsB/?mibextid=wwXIfr
• Youtube: https://youtube.com/@brendanschroeder?si=WSIYyZpMRQdxtdUF