Now you can join the ranks of Charlottesvillians who have been in classic works of cinema like “Major Payne,” “Toy Soldiers,” “Hush” and…uh…”Heart’s Lonely Hunter” — head out to the casting call for “Evan Almighty”, which will be filmed in Crozet and Charlottesville. On February 25 & 26, from 10am-1pm/2pm-6pm they’ll be looking for adults who can play the simple townsfolk of Crozet better than the actual simple townsfolk of Crozet. If you play your cards right, you might be “discovered,” leading to riches, fame, dissatisfaction, depression, and, ultimately, an early death fueled by a mixture of drugs and alcohol.
Have fun!
An FYI for anyone thinking of being an extra:
1) It’s going to be at least a 12 hour day from the time starting after they get you get signed in.
2) It will be a lot of Hurry up and wait, so bring a book and a backpack with stuff to keep you comfortable and/or entertained, and possibly your own comfortable fold up chair (any chairs they provide you probably won’t be).
3) In Los Angeles Non-union extras get between $64 to $80 dollars for the first 8 hours of work. Hours 9 and 10 are time and a half. Hours 11 and 12 are double time. Anything over 12 hours stays double time.
4) If they let you go earlier than 8 hours they still have to pay you for the original 8 hours.
5) If they have to give you a haircut or ask you to shave that mustache… that means they’re supposed to pay you extra money.
6) Since it’s a 12 hour day, they are supposed to feed you. Breakfast after you arrive and get checked in, and lunch six hours after. If you go longer than 12 hours they are supposed to provide you with dinner. Basically a meal every six hours. You’re going to be an extra so don’t expect the food to be great. (Might help to bring your own food and drinks as well- see number 2 above).
7) Don’t expect to be “discovered.” That’s a hollywood fable. As an extra you are human background furniture. If you’re noticed or noticable on camera then a) you’re not doing your job, b) the director isn’t doing his, c) the scene you got noticed in will end up on the cutting room floor.
8) Do not bring and try to give to “anyone on staff” your “headshots” or that script you want someone to read- either action will get you escorted off the set by security.
9) They’re shooting this in VA *a right to work state*, which means they’ll probably try to shaft you on numbers 3, 4, and 5 above.
10) The Assistant Director (AD), 1st and 2nd AD and the production assistant’s are all working longer hours than you will be at least 15 hours. If any of these people speak with you they will probably not be nice, polite, or pleasant. (and the AD’s will only address you as a group).
If you’re still interested in being an extra after reading this, then by all means go ahead, you’ll end up with some extra beer money and a story to tell the grandkids. And who knows you might actually have a little fun.
How can the casting call be a 12-hour day if it’s only 10-1, then 2-6?
The casting call isn’t a 12-hour day — the shoot is, for those
unfortunatelucky enough to be cast.Oh, and Waldo…
In that list of films shot in Charlottesville you also forgot to mention “Morgan Stewart’s Coming Home” starring Jon Cryer. Which was shot on location (around 1985 or ’86) in Charlottesville and Washington D.C.
In C’ville at Ashlawn, The Downtown Mall (outside the Jefferson Theater) and the Fashion Mall (south end near J.C. Penny’s when Waldenbooks used to be down there).
Of course could be forgetting one as well, but I liked this one a lot better than Major Payne so thought it was worthy of inclusion as well. :)
Wow, I’ve never even heard of that. That’s a great bit of trivia. :)
And don’t forget True Colors starring John Cusack and James Spader. It opens when they are room mates at the UVA Law School. However, they have them living together in a Lawn room. There are also some nice shots of the Corner including Mincers and Macados. The interior shots don’t look anything like the Macados I remember, but it was long time ago…
i remember True Colors. THey also had a shot inside of Trax. Look NOTHING like it.
I had the unfortunate privilege of being an extra in the movie Kundun (1997). It was a movie by Martin Scorsese about the Dahli Lama that bombed. I was told that being an extra was easy money so having just arrived in LA for school, I thought I’d give it a shot for the experience. I was on set for 14 hours, the food stunk, and yes there weren’t any seats. It was a special effects studio so half of this building was painted neon green which made you feel like you were trapped in a cartoon. Most of the people there were idiots. I remember how this guy was bragging about how he had changed 4 different times on a 90210 set; like that was somehow advancing his career. I actually got along well with the staff but was made to feel like a lower class human when dinner was served. They told all the extras that we had to wait till the staff was served before we could get in line. Then the monk outfits that they had us wear smelled like rotten fish. I was told by a memeber of the staff, after the shoot, that the outfits were previously worn by actual monks on location and had not been washed before shipping back to LA. I did managed to make a couple friends so it wasn’t a total loss but I wouldn’t recomend being an extra just for the experience.
Don’t forget the Lou Gossett Jr./Sean Astin classic “True Colors”, which was filmed in Crozet at Miller School. Probably the greatest military school/terrorism movie in the last 50 years.