Why I love being an extra!
Recently I ended up reading this great article on the Canadian Actor Online website about extra work. It's worth checking out. An extra is defined by the author as: "those sitting, standing or walking bodies who decorate the background of movie and TV scenes while the camera focuses on the stars. They are the nameless but necessary wedding guests, restaurant diners and panicked crowds. No shopping mall or church scene would be realistic without them.
But as far as movie and TV personnel go, extras loiter at the very bottom of the food chain."
While this article does showcase a lot of the highs and lows of extra work, I find it does focus more on the negative. I would therefore like to take this opportunity to dispel some of those negative points.
Currently, I have been an extra about two times. My first time was for the CBC miniserie H20 which was filmed in Ottawa. Basically, I had gone to an open call for extras. About a month later I got a call asking that I show up at the Nepean Sportsplex in business attire as I would be a delegate at a leadership conference. I showed up at 11am at the designated location where you are put in a "holding area" until they needed you. We spent the whole day doing things like cheer, fill stands, carry placards, ect. We were given a good spaghetti dinner and we were wrapped at about 12:30am after continuously standing on our feet on a hard cement floor. I got paid 8$ an hour for my trouble. A week later I was going to be needed for two days of shooting for a funeral scene (wear black). This time went by much more smoothly, we were only needed in short spurts. At one point I ended up reading a book for 3 hours while I waited to be needed. At the end of the first day, a friend and I decided that instead of waiting in line for an hour to get paid, we went to a local pub nearby instead. In all, I made about 300$ for three days of work.
But the best part was all the fun I had. As an extra, you get to meet other people with very similar interests. Many of them actors like you just trying to make a name for themselves or get some extra cash (no pun intended). The extras' hold makes for great networking opportunities. Maybe you'll meet a playwright or director who's casting an upcoming independent film? For myself, I learned a lot about local agencies and classes to take.
There's also the fact that you are on a freakin' movie set! And although it is rare, you might end up upgraded to a speaking line. It happened to a friend of mine. She's now in the Union and doing well. Also, last night I had the pleasure of catching a good clear glimpse of myself last night when watching H20. I was ecstatic!
Recently, I agreed to be an extra on a friend's independent short. The shooting only took half a day and we weren't paid (low-budget), but they treated us so well! We got plenty of snacks and lunch too. Since it was low-budget I wasn't expecting that. I also got to meet some pretty interesting people, like the guy who read tarot cards and did a reading for most of us. Also, since I gave my time on such a small production, I will be remembered for projects later on.
It's all about networking in this business and by simply being an extra you'll get a lot of opportunities to do that.
But as far as movie and TV personnel go, extras loiter at the very bottom of the food chain."
While this article does showcase a lot of the highs and lows of extra work, I find it does focus more on the negative. I would therefore like to take this opportunity to dispel some of those negative points.
Currently, I have been an extra about two times. My first time was for the CBC miniserie H20 which was filmed in Ottawa. Basically, I had gone to an open call for extras. About a month later I got a call asking that I show up at the Nepean Sportsplex in business attire as I would be a delegate at a leadership conference. I showed up at 11am at the designated location where you are put in a "holding area" until they needed you. We spent the whole day doing things like cheer, fill stands, carry placards, ect. We were given a good spaghetti dinner and we were wrapped at about 12:30am after continuously standing on our feet on a hard cement floor. I got paid 8$ an hour for my trouble. A week later I was going to be needed for two days of shooting for a funeral scene (wear black). This time went by much more smoothly, we were only needed in short spurts. At one point I ended up reading a book for 3 hours while I waited to be needed. At the end of the first day, a friend and I decided that instead of waiting in line for an hour to get paid, we went to a local pub nearby instead. In all, I made about 300$ for three days of work.
But the best part was all the fun I had. As an extra, you get to meet other people with very similar interests. Many of them actors like you just trying to make a name for themselves or get some extra cash (no pun intended). The extras' hold makes for great networking opportunities. Maybe you'll meet a playwright or director who's casting an upcoming independent film? For myself, I learned a lot about local agencies and classes to take.
There's also the fact that you are on a freakin' movie set! And although it is rare, you might end up upgraded to a speaking line. It happened to a friend of mine. She's now in the Union and doing well. Also, last night I had the pleasure of catching a good clear glimpse of myself last night when watching H20. I was ecstatic!
Recently, I agreed to be an extra on a friend's independent short. The shooting only took half a day and we weren't paid (low-budget), but they treated us so well! We got plenty of snacks and lunch too. Since it was low-budget I wasn't expecting that. I also got to meet some pretty interesting people, like the guy who read tarot cards and did a reading for most of us. Also, since I gave my time on such a small production, I will be remembered for projects later on.
It's all about networking in this business and by simply being an extra you'll get a lot of opportunities to do that.
posted by Nancy Kenny at
11:56 AM
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