Kristanna Loken is an American model and actress best known for her roles as in Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines, BloodRayne and Painkiller Jane. She is full-blooded Norwegian and hails from New York, though her roots are in Wisconsin, my home state of 31 years.

I had the distinct pleasure of briefly speaking with Kristanna about her newest release, "Awesomest Maximus".

GS: You've done the convention circuit. I assume you love meeting the fans. But what do you hate about conventions?

KL: (laughs) Well, I think it's probably sweaty palms. I shake a lot of hands when I'm at conventions, and sweaty palms is a little tricky to get around. But honestly, I really do enjoy getting out there, meeting the people and talking to everybody about what's going on. People have a lot of interesting questions for me, and if I didn't have those people... they're the ones who keep me going. It's an interesting experience and it's fun.

GS: Did you have any Wisconsin stories or things you'd like to say about this lovely state?

KL: Yes. I spent a lot of time in Wisconsin growing up, as you know, because both of my parents are from there. I spent summers on the lake, and about 85% of my aunts, uncles and cousins live there so I get back fairly frequently. It's a nice little taste of home.

GS: And it's especially nice this week.

KL: You have good weather?

GS: It's 78 right now. (This was on March 14, 2012 -- still winter!)

KL: What?? That's warmer than it is here. Wow.

GS: What do you think is the most misunderstood thing about Uwe Boll?

KL: Good question. I like to call him "crazy brilliant", because I do think there's a method to his madness. He's really good at getting people together and organizing his films. And I think it was a nice departure for hi mto do something like "Darfur", which I was in but also worked on the producing side. We did that film unscripted and it was bold to do a film about genocide in an unscripted format. There's also a lot of freedom as an artist -- it was the first time I had done a film like that and it was a learning experience. So, again, there is a method to his madness.

GS: Fair enough. He just gets so much flak from people...

KL: I know. Anybody who will go into a boxing ring with their three worst critics, now that's a little outside the box. And there's a brilliance there. Definitely a craziness, but a brilliance, too.

GS: What drew you to "Awesomest Maximus"?

KL: The script came to me, and I was happy to do something a little bit different, which this movie definitely is. It was really fun to do a comedy. I found the script to be funny and very politically incorrect. Pushing the envelope, which I like to do with my work in any regard. And Will Sasso is a real talent, so it was a variance of things that ended up having me say, "this is a good idea".

GS: The humor is hard to characterize. Obviously, it's crude and juvenile. But there is an underlying intelligence there, too.

KL: Yeah, exactly. You're right. It's clever in its broadness.

GS: There is a certain prop in the movie, I don't want to say what it is, but you and Sophie Monk have this prop... and I'm curious where it is now.

KL: (laughs) I'm assuming you're talking about the black appendage?

GS: Yes.

KL: I have no idea where that currently resides. (laughs)

GS: I'm just curious if it ends up i na supply closet somewhere or if someone gets to keep it...

KL: It's a really valid question. Maybe someone can find out about that. Does it go into anonymous props? Is it someone's souvenir?

GS: What is Kazakhstan like?

KL: It's a real experience. I was there for a month. The people were very welcoming, and interesting in their look. They're Asian, but they speak Russian. It's been a free democratic country for 20 years and it's like the 5th largest country in the world. It's a huge land mass with a lot of natural resources, so they're building it up. They're a proud people that really want to share their country with the world. I was impressed. Some interesting foods, that's for sure. I had fermented horse's milk, which was a little bizarre.

GS: Were there logistical issues, or was it like shooting here?

KL: I think the film industry is very new to them. Communication was a bit of a challenge because people don't speak English there. And, in their defense, why should they? For me not speaking Russian, it was a bit challenging. But we had interpreters and we got by. They seem very keen on growing the film community. They'll get there.

GS: I see our time is running out, so thank you... perhaps I will see you at a convention.

KL: Yes, you might. Thanks!