Vera Farmiga and Nick Stahl in Quid Pro Quo Courtesy of Magnolia Pictures.

Aside from the physical aspect, can you discuss the psychological impact of being wheelchair-bound? Did you experience anything like people regarding you as "half of a man"?
I did. Yeah, you get a kind of pity. I found it common for people to look away — and maybe that's just New York in general — not make eye contact. People seemed to shy away or not want to acknowledge you, or pretend you're not there, because I think when they see people with disabilities it strikes fear in people, sometimes. They inevitably think, "What if that was me?" And then there were the people that were overly nice, trying to push me. And I was like, "No, that's OK." Or [they were] opening doors... compensating in the other direction. So it was really interesting to see those reactions, kind of get a feel, a sense, of what Isaac had been experiencing for so many years.

When did you first come across this script?
They approached me about it. This was years ago. And it was taking them a while to get off the ground, to get money. In the meantime I started doing this show for HBO [Carnivàle], so once they finally got their money to do it, I was unavailable. I couldn't do it anymore... Years later, all the elements kind of came together, and I was available and Vera was available and they had their money and so we just did it.

So did you and Vera spend much time together in order to get that intense chemistry?
Yeah, we did. We got along well. We didn't really have to, in a way... We definitely had a certain rapport, I think, friendship and similar sensibilities in some ways. So yeah, I was really thrilled to work with such a dedicated professional actress.

The introduction of the magic shoes later on in the movie introduces an element of fantasy, and then Vera's character suggests that perhaps Isaac suffers from hysterical paralysis. What's your take on his sudden ability to walk?
I think it was just something that he had suppressed, and the pain that he still had about his parents and his life was preventing him from coming to terms with it. It's about growing up maybe in a way, his evolution. And I knew that that can occur: hysterical paralysis... Your mind is very powerful, and [if] you're told that you're never going to walk again, you kind of give up hope and your mind doesn't allow for you to ever walk again. But really you might have that ability again, you don't know. So I just thought that whole idea was really interesting.

And your take on Vera's character, her desire to be paralyzed and lose the ability to walk?
Well, to me, I always saw her character as just racked with so much pain and guilt over what she had done to this family that she felt like she deserved it.

And that's where the wires between guilt and sexuality and all sorts of other aspects begin to entangle?
Yeah, yeah. Exactly.