A very good day today for Extra work

Today turned out to be a very good day after all with respect to my Extra work. There continues to be very little work notices.  I applied to the few I could last week for today, Monday, and had not heard back from anyone.  Was feeling a bit discouraged and had ruled out The Knick because they announced their fittings were for today.  But at 4pm, I got an email saying I had been selected and could I come in for a fitting tomorrow, Tuesday. I was out running errands when I got the email and was so excited I rushed home because they needed a current picture of my hair for color and length to finalize my selection and schedule my fitting. For The Knick, women's hair has to be past shoulder length. I barely made it!! I had to take a selfie.  That took me about 10 tries because I had to take it from the side and was guessing where to point the camera to get the right frame of my hair. 

I'm so excited about this shoot. I'll work background as an immigrant fresh off the boat!! The show is a period piece set in 1900.I love that show--it's one of the top shows on my list to work on.  I have my fitting tomorrow and work next Monday. If Clive Owen talks to me, I might just faint!  I really really hope he is on set when I am there.  Would love to see him live. So curious to see what they will dress me in for the immigrant look. Pics to follow. I hear from other Extras that the director, Steven Soderbergh, is a very precise and discriminating director who does not particularly like background actors.  So it'll be interesting to actually be on set. 

Additionally, turns out last week, despite there being few job offers for background work, I did manage to squeak into an evening job last Friday night on the new show Happyish.  I was the last Extra to be hired for that job. Very close call.  We did an evening shoot in The Bronx in a huge wholesale warehouse for restaurant supplies.  They made part of it up to look like an Ikea--very convincing.  I was a shopper there and had a short scene with Kathryrn Hahn, the lead actress in that show.  I love her--she was so funny in Parks and Recreation and really great in Girls.  She's been in a number of other TV shows and she is always a joy to watch.  I know we are never supposed to approach the principal actors but I just couldn't help myself.  After we wrapped, she was walking right by me and I just blurted out "I love you"  and she was very nice about it and told me that was a sweet thing to say.  

The ultimate in literal CASTING job notices!!

This is so great because this casting notice is about actually making a mold casting of you. How much more literal can you get for a casting notice! I would have totally submitted for this if they were looking for my age and body type. Gotta love the diversity of opportunities in this line of work.   Casting Notice
Project Name:	Studio EIS - Kaiser Permanente
Project Type:	Other
Format:
Rate/Compensation:
Message: PLEASE DO NOT CONTACT THEM DIRECTLY. SUBMIT HERE AND WE WILL CONTACT YOU IF INTERESTED.
Role Role Type Gender/Age/Ethnicities Description/Note African-American Female - 5'6" Special Female / 18 to 35 / AfricanAm African-American female. 5'6" around 115 lbs. Trim. This is for a project for a company called Studio EIS. They make statues and figures for museums and companies all around the world. This is not a shoot. You would be going into their studio in Brooklyn where they would provide you with something to wear and then they would make a mold of you to use to create a statue. The whole thing should take about 3-4 hours. They would then pay you $250.00 check on the spot. They are usually pretty flexibl Caucasian Female - 5'8" Special Female / 65 to 80 / Caucasian Caucasian female 65-80. 5'8", 160 lbs. This is for a project for a company called Studio EIS. They make statues and figures for museums and companies all around the world. This is not a shoot. You would be going into their studio in Brooklyn where they would provide you with something to wear and then they would make a mold of you to use to create a statue. The whole thing should take about 3-4 hours. They would then pay you $250.00 check on the spot. They are usually pretty flexible with timing Hispanic Female - Late 20s-Early 30s Special Female / 25 to 35 / Hispanic Hispanic female late 20s to early 30s. 5'4" to 5'6" and thin to average. This is for a project for a company called Studio EIS. They make statues and figures for museums and companies all around the world. This is not a shoot. You would be going into their studio in Brooklyn where they would provide you with something to wear and then they would make a mold of you to use to create a statue. The whole thing should take about 3-4 hours. They would then pay you $250.00 check on the spot. They are u Caucasian Male - 5'8" to 5'9' - 40-60 Special Male / 40 to 60 / Caucasian Caucsaian Male 40-60. 5'8" to 5'9". Average to heavyset. This is for a project for a company called Studio EIS. They make statues and figures for museums and companies all around the world. This is not a shoot. You would be going into their studio in Brooklyn where they would provide you with something to wear and then they would make a mold of you to use to create a statue. The whole thing should take about 3-4 hours. They would then pay you $250.00 check on the spot. They are usually pretty fl African-American Female - 40s - 5'7" to 5'8" Special Female / 40 to 49 / All Ethnicities, AfricanAm, Am-Indian, Asian, Caucasian, East-Ind, Hispanic, MidEastern, Mixed, PacificIsland African-American female 40s. 5'7" to 5'8". Average weight/body type. This is for a project for a company called Studio EIS. They make statues and figures for museums and companies all around the world. This is not a shoot. You would be going into their studio in Brooklyn where they would provide you with something to wear and then they would make a mold of you to use to create a statue. The whole thing should take about 3-4 hours. They would then pay you $250.00 check on the spot. They are usual Hispanic Girl - 8-10 Special Female / 8 to 10 / Hispanic Hispanic girl 8- 10. Around 4'4" Average to heavyset. This is for a project for a company called Studio EIS. They make statues and figures for museums and companies all around the world. This is not a shoot. You would be going into their studio in Brooklyn where they would provide your daughter with something to wear and then they would make a mold of her to use to create a statue. The whole thing should take about 3-4 hours. They would then pay you $250.00 check on the spot. They are usually pr

Drought in Extra Land

This week has been a tough week for getting Extra work.  I worked on Monday and then nothing for the rest of the week.  Had been submitted for a couple of commercials but nothing came through.  There were so few job notices that went out this week.  I would guess maybe about 20% of what had been coming out over the last few weeks. I can only imagine the fierce competition for those few jobs. I'm guessing the dearth of work is for a couple of reasons: 1) lots of TV shows are finishing up their filming for the season. I was on a couple of finale episodes for different shows and other extras were telling about other shows that were now done filming.  So there's that and then it's Holy Week this week and lots of businesses close for Good Friday and/or Passover.  It may be that filming productions also do that.  It's a little spooky to have so few work notices going out.  It makes me very grateful that I do not depend on this work for any living wage/income.  I feel for people who do depend on this work for their livelihood. I submitted for the few jobs that were a match for me, which was only about 1/3 of how many I would have normally submitted for. Before the slump, I would have heard back for a booking on at least one to three of those jobs but this week was ZILCH, NADA, NOTHING for Tuesday, Thursday or Friday.  Trying not to take it personally but this NO response makes me feel like I have cooties or something....

Had not really appreciated there would be seasonal fluctuations in this business.  The longer I'm in it the more I'm learning how all this works.  My understanding from word on the street is that late Spring and Summer get very busy with movie filming.  So busy that people are working 14 to 15 hour days, day after day after day.  It can get pretty brutal but apparently that's the money making season. Depending on the movie, the work can be quite risky.  I joined a FB group called New York Background Artists, and one post described injuries people acquired while doing background work for NOAH and Spiderman II. Along with the injuries, it's a prime time to earn waivers--the golden ticket to meeting criteria for earning a SAG card. I'm really hoping to work on at least two or three movies over the next few months.

Hoping the slump doesn't last too long, if only for those people who are dependent on this work. 

Is there a doctor in the house?

Or how about a nurse, or lawyer, or a socialite or a cop?  Kelly gave me one of her old stethoscopes for a more authentic look. Love that girl!! My ever resourceful sis-in-law, Kerry, gave me a mink cape and long wool coat which will greatly enhance my wealthy gala look once I finally find a gown I like.  I just got cast as a wealthy restaurant patron so seems like maybe I have gotten my foot in the door for those roles.  The cop uniform remains on my prop costume list.  I think I may have identified a SAG member who will help me with that.  Still debating whether to invest the several hundred dollars or not.  So unsure where we will be living in a year.  If I knew we would be living here for at least another couple of years, then the investment would feel like it could really pay off, especially if I were able to earn a SAG card within a year.  But without a SAG card and only living here maybe another year of so, not sure if the investment is totally worth it.  Though it does make for very good story.  Maybe that should be enough reason to buy it!

Bring out the fake blood suitcase and disappearing wine stain solution

I know that the blood puddles surrounding dead or injured bodies seen on TV is fake, what I didn't know is that they bring it out in a big suitcase that has lots of different shapes and sizes of plastic blood puddles. Big puddles for lots of bloody mess effect and small puddles for just a subtle hint of distress.  I always thought they used some kind of liquid on the ground but it makes total sense now that it would be plastic preformed shapes.  Easy to contain and pick up, no muss, no fuss, can move it around as needed and change the size and location to wherever they want it around the body.  They of course still have the squirt bottle of blood goo like in those ketchup or mustard bottles in burger places they use to squirt "blood" onto the clothing and skin.

I was in a scene recently where a waitress has two glasses of "red wine" that spill on someone when she bumps into them.  Of course that scene needs to be repeated over and over and over again to get it right and shot from multiple angles.   I was standing next to a set person and asked how many of the exact same outfits do they have to film this scene as the woman is quite dressed up and the stains look very real. The set person tells me, "Oh no, that "wine" disappears once it dries.  They just take the actor into the bathroom and blow-dry her dress and the "stain" just disappears and is ready for the next take.

All these tricks of the trade are probably pretty standard to those in the business but for an outsider like me, it's all just so cool to see how it's done. 

Close encounters of the Tom Selleck kind

I have had the fabulous luck to be positioned very close to the principle actors for the last several shoots which has been remarkable given how many extras can be on any shoot.  There were over 200 for this last Blue Bloods episode. My most recent one, as a police chief on Blue Bloods had me in the direct sight line of Tom Selleck, the star of the show.  They were rehearsing the scene then chatting among themselves.  I'm watching all this, then suddenly Tom looks directly at me and starts walking towards me, he's only about, maybe, 10 feet away and says "May I?" I respond, "My pleasure," as he starts to straighten my tie on my uniform.  He makes the adjustment, we smile at each other and he steps back to where his mark on the ground is.  He then says that my tie had popped out of place and he wanted to correct it.  Meanwhile all the other extras who are in the general area are all watching this interaction with total surprise.  One extra leans over and says he's been an Extra on this show many, many times and has never seen this happen. Of course I am thrilled this happened to ME! Then Dennis Haysbert (well known Black actor and spokesperson for All State Insurance "You're in Good Hands" commercial ad campaign) who is also in this episode is standing around between rehearsals and looks my way.  I am completely bundled up in my own coat because it's FREEZING (28 degrees and 20 degrees when the wind was blowing) so you can't see my uniform.  He comes over and asks me if I'm playing a detective.  I say "No, I'm a police chief, check me out" as I am opening up wide my coat. He gives me an approving look then gets back to business. I'm the only one he interacts with.   I don't know what it is I'm doing to attract this attention but I seem to drive at least some people to distraction.  These two back to back personal interactions made this, absolutely, otherwise miserably frigid shoot a total bonus shoot for me.  While I don't read celebrity gossip magazines or watch reality shows or celebrity focused shows like E! or Access Hollywood, I do like a good celebrity sighting as much as anyone. So getting to have these brief interactions are just so special. I also totally lucked out on the set of Madam Secretary on Friday last week.  I was seated in the front row as a congressional hearing attendee and there was an empty seat next to me.  During the breaks, Tea Leoni, the star of the show plopped herself down in the empty seat next to me while chatting it up with the director, Eric Stoltz (who is also a well known actor who I have been a big fan of for a very long time), and other actors and crew.  She is very funny, has a great sense of humor and a strong presence in terms of giving input and feedback about the scene. She's also tiny like a bird.  Mr. Stoltz, as a director is really fantastic, very personable and down to earth, very interactive with everyone (principle actors, crew, extras), so observant to detail in making the scene as realistic as possible.  He gave us Extras several mini acting lessons so we would get our reactions right in that scene--just as he wanted.  Fantastic.

A couple of things I forgot to mention about the fitting for the police chief uniform is that when they were tightening up the neck of the shirt, the wardrobe person told the tailor, make it as tight as you can but not so tight she gets a panic attack. I kid you not.  Those were her exact words.  I thought, WHOA, I wonder what past reaction from an Extra would make her say something like that.  The other thing is that props asked me to wear a watch with the uniform.  Apparently all cops wear watches.  The only watch I own is my deceased dad's watch, which is about 50 years old, it has his initials as part of the wristband.  I love that watch because it's associated with so many happy memories of my dad.  I keep it put away (it doesn't work) so to have this occasion to wear it was so lovely.  I felt like he was on set with me.  Made me feel really happy.

The other funny thing about the Blue Bloods shoot was the interplay between the character Dennis Haysbert plays and his insurance commercial persona.  A rather unfortunate situation arises for his character in this episode and a quick thinking witty Extra said to me on the sly, "I guess he wasn't in such good hands after all."  I thought that was a good one.

So here I am in uniform....I never did get issued a hat, which kind of bummed me out but the uniform is still pretty sharp looking!  Again, when they styled my hair back, they used a gallon of hair spray, loads of bobby pins, and ratted my hair on top--which doesn't really show but took a bit to get it combed out afterwards.

My next shoot is as a wealthy country club awards show attendee.  Had my fitting today.  Actually got some nice compliment on clothes I took in and wardrobe was able to put together a very high fashion outfit for me with just a couple of detail props from them.  I feel like maybe I had a breakthrough with this character role.   Pics of that look in the next couple of days. 

Ideas for making a little extra as an extra

At the recent shoot of Madam Secretary, we were at a location that didn't allow much food.  It was a county courthouse.  So the crafty table was very minimal and we had already commuted by bus for an hour to get to the location and lunch wasn't going to be for a while (wound up having "lunch" at 5pm). Around 11:30 or so, some of the extras banded together and had a couple of pizzas brought in for themselves.  I, and a woman I was sitting next to, were watching all this and saw that a couple of people came up to this group asking if they were selling pizza slices.  They were not but it made us think that could be a very interesting way to make some extra money on these gigs (pun intended).  With a crowd of a hundred people and double that sometimes, if you timed the arrival of the pizza right, you could probably sell a slice for 3 to 5 dollars and make a very tidy profit. It is after all a very captive audience.  Then we started thinking of other ideas, like dollar a minute foot massages.  Standing around for hours at a time is really hard on the feet, especially for the women who have to wear heels. I think foot massages would be very popular, and for a dollar a minute, that seems like a good deal.  I know I would pay for that. Again, captive audience and known need... Make up lessons and consultations are another possibility as well as how to style your hair--all for a fee (I couldn't do either of those but some other entrepernerial extra could take that on).

Then more than once while running around all over town shopping for Background wardrobe, I've thought someone should open up a clothing store that specializes in Extra clothing (muted colors, simple design, etc).  Then I thought, WHY NOT ME??!!  I could do a walk in and on line store.  I could scour the Thrift Stores, clearance racks, discount stores, flea markets, etc, etc collecting all the appropriate wardrobe and accessories and then sell them for a profit but still at a very good price.  I think it could be a very interesting business proposal. There are thousands and thousands of people doing this work, I think there may be a real market to save people the time and energy needed to build their work look. Especially new people getting into the business.

Still thinking of other ideas....