Zack Gottsagen
Keynote Speaker: Actor & Dancer, Star of "Peanut Butter Falcon," "Bulletproof," and "Becoming Bulletproof"
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Zack Gottsagen Biography
Zachary Robin Gottsagen, “Zack," made his first debut as the star of a natural childbirth instructional film on April 22, 1985, and has been an enthusiastic performer since his first role as a frog at age three. He attended Bak Middle School of the Arts, and graduated from Dreyfoos School of the Arts, as a theatre major in 2004. Zack attended Palm Beach State College.
Zack was the first child with Down syndrome to be fully included in the Palm Beach County school district. After the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) was passed, Zack filed one of the first ADA suits, which successfully challenged Little League to include children with disabilities, resulting in all coaches being required to receive training in inclusion.
Zack is an actor and a dancer. He performed with Southern Dance Theatre for fifteen years and assisted teaching there. Zack also assisted teaching theatre to children at Standing Ovation Performing Arts. He worked in an inclusive childcare center as well. Zack lives independently in an apartment in Boynton Beach, Florida and worked at the Alco Theatre for several years. He deeply loves his friends, family, and his rescue dogs.
He loves swimming, working out, basketball, kayaking, windsurfing, bowling and watching wrestling. Zack is a leader in SAIL (Self Advocates for Independent Living) through the Gold Coast Down Syndrome Organization and is actively involved with Arts for All. He votes in every election and has advocated for the rights of people with disabilities in local, state, and national arenas.
Zack performed a monologue from Hamlet while standing on top of a tall ladder at the Blackbox Theatre at Dreyfoos in 2003. He auditioned for and was chosen to star in the live theatre production of “Artie” at the Royal Palm Playhouse in 2005. He became involved with Zeno Mountain Farms nonprofit film productions from 2008 until the present. He performed in multiple independent movies with Zeno, including “Burning Like A Fire” and “Life of a Dollar Bill”.
Zack often played the villain role, with his most outstanding performance in “Bulletproof” in 2012. During the filming of “Bulletproof”, a documentary was made titled, “Becoming Bulletproof,” (2014) which went behind the scenes to follow Zack and other actors with different disabilities through their daily lives. “Becoming Bulletproof” was featured on Showtime for several months, received numerous film festival awards, and has a 100% rating on Rotten Tomatoes. In July 2015, the Smithsonian Museum invited Zack to be the keynote speaker for the 25th anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act and showed the movie “Becoming Bulletproof”.
While filming with Zeno Mountain Farms in Los Angeles, Zack met Tyler Nielson and Michael Schwartz, who were volunteering with the production. Tyler and Mike were so taken with Zack’s personality and talent that they wrote the script for “The Peanut Butter Falcon” incorporating Zack’s mannerisms, ways of expressing himself, innocence, enthusiasm and joy for life into the lead character role.
In 2017, Zack began filming his first feature length movie, “The Peanut Butter Falcon,” where he has the leading role along side his co-stars, Shia LaBeouf, Dakota Johnson, and Bruce Dern. Zack thrived on the opportunity to perform. He insisted on doing all his own stunts, much to the chagrin of his stunt double. Each morning of filming Zack welcomed the cast and crew with his inspirational speeches via megaphone and called out each person who excelled the day before. His genuine warmth and affection built the camaraderie and love that flowed throughout the production of the film.
Zack's talent, passion, motivation and perseverance have been the impetus for Zack to build his expanding performing arts career. Zack has won many awards, including the Quincy Jones Exceptional Advocate Award from Global Down Syndrome Foundation; Outstanding Breakout Performance from Crested Butte Film Festival; the Rising Star Award from Palm Springs International Film Festival; Newcomer Award from the Hollywood Critics Association; Distinguished Alumni Award from the Palm Beach County Education Foundation; the Ed Roberts Award from the Center for Independent Living in Berkeley; Honorary Champion of Inclusion from Best Buddies; and the Breakthrough Entertainer Award from the Associated Press. Zack presented the Media Access Award in 2019 to the producers of “The Peanut Butter Falcon”. He also presented an Oscar at the 2020 Academy Awards. In March 2020, Zack was invited to speak in Norway for World Down Syndrome Day.
In Zack’s words, “Talent… that’s all I've got.”
Contact a speaker booking agent to check availability on Zack Gottsagen and other top speakers and celebrities.
Zack Gottsagen Videos
How to book Zack Gottsagen?
Our booking agents have successfully helped clients around the world secure talent like Zack Gottsagen for speaking engagements, personal appearances, product endorsements, or corporate entertainment for over 15 years. The team at All American Entertainment represents and listens to the needs of organizations and corporations seeking to hire keynote speakers, celebrities or entertainers. Fill out a booking request form for Zack Gottsagen, or call our office at 1.800.698.2536 to discuss your upcoming event. One of our experienced agents will be happy to help you get pricing information and check availability for Zack Gottsagen or any other celebrity of your choice.
How much does it cost to book Zack Gottsagen?
Booking fees for Zack Gottsagen, or any other speakers and celebrities, are determined based on a number of factors and may change without notice. Pricing often varies according to the circumstances, including the talent's schedule, market conditions, length of presentation, and the location of the event. Speaker fees listed on this website are intended to serve as a guideline only. In some cases, the actual quote may be above or below the stated range. For the most current fee to hire Zack Gottsagen, please fill out the booking request form or call our office at 1.800.698.2536 to speak with an experienced booking agent.
Who is the agent for Zack Gottsagen?
All American Entertainment has successfully secured celebrity talent like Zack Gottsagen for clients worldwide for more than 15 years. As a full-service talent booking agency, we have access to virtually any speaker or celebrity in the world. Our agents are happy and able to submit an offer to the speaker or celebrity of your choice, letting you benefit from our reputation and long-standing relationships in the industry. Fill out the booking request form or call our office at 1.800.698.2536, and one of our agents will assist you to book Zack Gottsagen for your next private or corporate function.
What is a full-service talent booking agency?
All American Speakers is a "buyers agent" and exclusively represents talent buyers, meeting planners and event professionals, who are looking to secure celebrities and speakers for personal appearances, speaking engagements, corporate entertainment, public relations campaigns, commercials, or endorsements. We do not exclusively represent Zack Gottsagen or claim ourselves as the exclusive booking agency, business manager, publicist, speakers bureau or management for Zack Gottsagen or any other speaker or celebrity on this website. For more information on how we work and what makes us unique, please read the AAE Advantage.
Zack Gottsagen is a keynote speaker and industry expert who speaks on a wide range of topics including Disability, Diversity and Acting. The estimated speaking fee range to book Zack Gottsagen for live events is Below $10,000, and for virtual events Below $10,000. Zack Gottsagen can be booked for (private) corporate events, personal appearances, keynote speeches, or other performances. Similar motivational celebrity speakers are Lydia X. Z. Brown, Mikayla Holmgren and Wesley Hamilton. Contact All American Speakers for ratings, reviews, videos and information on scheduling Zack Gottsagen for an upcoming event.
VIDEO
Zack Gottsagen Videos
REVIEWS
Zack Gottsagen Reviews
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Thank you for a great event and for sticking with us as we went through some changes at our university!
The Catholic University of America - Oct 29 2021 -
Zack + team were absolutely fantastic to work with! Amanda + Edie were very responsive throughout the process. Zack did a wonderful job engaging our audience and sharing his story!! We can't wait to work with them again!
Special Olympics MN - Feb 08 2021 -
Zack did a fantastic job! He was well prepared and very personable and a joy to work with.
Milestone Centers, Inc. - Jan 20 2021
NEWS
Zack Gottsagen News
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“Damn It, That’s Huge”: Actors With Down Syndrome Are Finding More Work in Hollywood
In The Peanut Butter Falcon, a coming-of-age tale about a young man named Zak who runs away from a nursing home to pursue his dream of becoming a professional wrestler, the actor leads a cast of Hollywood A-listers, including Shia LaBeouf, Dakota Johnson, Bruce Dern, Thomas Haden Church, Jon Bernthal and John Hawkes. A major break for any fledgling star, the role was specifically written for Gottsagen, a former Special Olympics athlete with Down syndrome.
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‘Peanut Butter Falcon’ Star Zack Gottsagen’s Unlikely Path to Hollywood
Zack Gottsagen, who has Down syndrome, co-stars in "Peanut Butter Falcon." The road trip movie stars Shia LaBeouf an as outlaw on the run who befriends a man with Down syndrome (Gottsagen) after he’s run away from his assisted living home to pursue his dreams of being a professional wrestler. Co-directors Tyler Nilson and Michael Schwartz wrote the movie for Gottsagen after meeting him at a summer camp for people with disabilities.
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Zack Gottsagen has Down syndrome. And a movie role. And a best bud named Shia LaBeouf
The story behind the film “The Peanut Butter Falcon” is as unexpectedly heartwarming as the film itself. And it all started with the film’s star, Zack Gottsagen. In town recently to be a presenter for the Media Access Awards, the actor posed for a photo shoot in the Beverly Hilton lobby. Songs from his favorite movie, “Grease,” played in the background to help loosen him up. His mother Shelley said he’d watched it so many times as a kid, he wore out the VHS tape. Asked what part he’d most like to play, Gottsagen immediately replied, “Danny Zuko.”
FAQ
How to book Zack Gottsagen?
Our booking agents have successfully helped clients around the world secure talent like Zack Gottsagen for speaking engagements, personal appearances, product endorsements, or corporate entertainment for over 15 years. The team at All American Entertainment represents and listens to the needs of organizations and corporations seeking to hire keynote speakers, celebrities or entertainers. Fill out a booking request form for Zack Gottsagen, or call our office at 1.800.698.2536 to discuss your upcoming event. One of our experienced agents will be happy to help you get pricing information and check availability for Zack Gottsagen or any other celebrity of your choice.
How much does it cost to book Zack Gottsagen?
Booking fees for Zack Gottsagen, or any other speakers and celebrities, are determined based on a number of factors and may change without notice. Pricing often varies according to the circumstances, including the talent's schedule, market conditions, length of presentation, and the location of the event. Speaker fees listed on this website are intended to serve as a guideline only. In some cases, the actual quote may be above or below the stated range. For the most current fee to hire Zack Gottsagen, please fill out the booking request form or call our office at 1.800.698.2536 to speak with an experienced booking agent.
Who is the agent for Zack Gottsagen?
All American Entertainment has successfully secured celebrity talent like Zack Gottsagen for clients worldwide for more than 15 years. As a full-service talent booking agency, we have access to virtually any speaker or celebrity in the world. Our agents are happy and able to submit an offer to the speaker or celebrity of your choice, letting you benefit from our reputation and long-standing relationships in the industry. Fill out the booking request form or call our office at 1.800.698.2536, and one of our agents will assist you to book Zack Gottsagen for your next private or corporate function.
What is a full-service talent booking agency?
All American Speakers is a "buyers agent" and exclusively represents talent buyers, meeting planners and event professionals, who are looking to secure celebrities and speakers for personal appearances, speaking engagements, corporate entertainment, public relations campaigns, commercials, or endorsements. We do not exclusively represent Zack Gottsagen or claim ourselves as the exclusive booking agency, business manager, publicist, speakers bureau or management for Zack Gottsagen or any other speaker or celebrity on this website. For more information on how we work and what makes us unique, please read the AAE Advantage.
Zack Gottsagen is a keynote speaker and industry expert who speaks on a wide range of topics including Disability, Diversity and Acting. The estimated speaking fee range to book Zack Gottsagen for live events is Below $10,000, and for virtual events Below $10,000. Zack Gottsagen can be booked for (private) corporate events, personal appearances, keynote speeches, or other performances. Similar motivational celebrity speakers are Lydia X. Z. Brown, Mikayla Holmgren and Wesley Hamilton. Contact All American Speakers for ratings, reviews, videos and information on scheduling Zack Gottsagen for an upcoming event.
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