My Brief Acting Experience
After losing my job in November, I was seeking interesting ways to make a few extra bucks. More than once, I explored the possibility of selling feet pics (no, really) but decided I would rather not spend all my money on pedicures (among other reasons).
I had always thought about working as a background actor, considering there was no experience or talent required, and also considering my interest in the behind-the-scenes aspects of filming (see my previous blog post). Central Casting is the biggest agency in New York City for placing background actors in television shows and movies, so I went to one of their orientation sessions, got my picture taken, and walked out of the building ready to grab Hollywood by the star-studded balls. Actually, not so fast.
First of all, by orientation, I mean I sat in a room filling out paperwork while a silent video played—over and over and over again—about the background acting experience. They were pretty much just checking to see if I was a real person. Soon after that thrilling welcome, I began to receive requests for availability. In terms of training as a background actor, Central Casting is a fan of the renowned “baptism by fire” method.
Now, I am not able to tell you what shows I worked on, what I was doing on those sets, or which celebrities I may have spotted while on set, because I’ve been warned not to, and I like to follow the rules. But I will say that the two days I spent working as a background actor were two of the longest days of my life.
Before I go on, if you are thinking of trying out background acting, go for it. It is [slightly] worth one day of work to get a peek behind the curtain. Chase your dreams. Whatever. Now on to what I really mean to say…
Of the ten hours I spent working the first day, and the twelve I spent working the second (about two weeks later), I would mark about 12.5% percent of that time as interesting. I liked the brief moments when we were explained what was happening in the scene, or given small notes on what to do to complete the picture, or allowed to watch the filming of a shot we were not in. I liked observing the crew set up the cameras and lighting and sound rigs for the perfect shot. The props department was interesting to observe, as well, especially as they provided us with food for not-eating.
As a background actor, most of my day was spent sitting in “holding,” which has both times been a church near set, and waiting to be summoned. Both times, it was hours and hours before I was summoned. A couple of times, I got excited by my summons only to be told to sit back down for more hours, that it was a false alarm. If you try your hand at this, bring a book. Or two. Only one of my two times working was I offered food during this waiting period. So pack your own.
When you are on set, most of the time you are standing around in between takes, wearing whatever wardrobe told you was Kosher, even if it’s not weather appropriate. All background acting is silent, as to not mess with the dialogue they are actually trying to record from the primary actors. My first time, I was dancing in a club to no music. The second time, I had to pretend to be having a riveting conversation with another woman who was saying nothing. It’s kinda hysterical. But it’s also exhausting. When they yell cut, all you want to do is finally get to know the person you’ve been fake-talking to for hours, but silence is mandatory so the crew can communicate next moves. I get it, I get it. Time is money. But I never even learned her name!
For your time, the money is not great. The money was only half the point of the gig for me, as I was hoping to grow my love for what goes into producing even a single episode of network TV, but I do think it should have been more to justify the time we set aside to be there.
When you accept an acting job, you have to make sure you are a) free during a yet-to-be-announced time window on a weekday when you have to travel to get a COVID test at a yet-to-be-announced location, and b) free for all hours of the filming day, as you do not know what time you will need to be there until the night before, and you never really know how long you’ll have to stay. I, as an unemployed person with no nighttime plans on a few weekdays, was a perfect candidate. I did, however, find myself wondering how all these other people could afford to background act for the entirety of a random Thursday, make pennies for it, and then decide to do it again next week.
A glowing review, no? Just speaking my truth, in case anyone cares. After receiving the money from my second day of work, I deactivated my Central Casting account. My star turn has come to a lame end.
Last night, the TV episode I worked on aired, and I was not visible for one second. True, you don’t become a background actor as a first step to stardom, but it would have been nice to see some evidence of the time I gave. Needless to say, you will not be seeing my star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame any time soon. Feet pics it is…