Double Take

A friend shot me an e-mail from a casting company looking for a double for an actor. A double is someone of same height, build and appearance of the principal actor. Setting up a camera shot can take a long time to get lighting and blocking right. A stand in takes the place of a principal during the set up so the actor can remain in his or her comfortable dressing room until the director is ready to shoot.


When I worked Memphis beat, both stand in actors looked or were shaped nothing like the principals they were filling in for. The stand in for Jason lee is about 5 inches shorter and 40 pounds heavier than Jason, and with less hair than my ass. He must be some one's brother in law.  The e mail that I was sent had a photo of the actor Miguel Ferrer. Photo double needed, 6'1" medium build. I saw the e mail and thought "Yea, so? Why did you send it to me?"

A couple hours later my friend asked if they called me yet? "Who? About what?" Oh that. If you think so. I sent a photo in and with in 10 minutes received a call back. They asked for a most recent photo to forward to the director. I didn't get the photo double work but did get a call back for background work. Just as well. Even though stand in work is a step up from background with a little better pay and better food, I was happy with just background.


I ran into a number of background extras that I knew, all said it's been really slow for the past couple of months.  I ended up coming in late because of being contacted last minute. That was fine, I spoke with a buddy there who said they had sat in holding for the past 3 hours and hadn't been to the set. About 3 or 4 backgrounds came up to me and commented that I was a good stand in for Miguel. "But I didn't get the part." "Really? Ya kiddin? You kinda look like him"  Yea, well it's a cold heartless business.


We sat from 9pm until about 2:30 am until we were brought out to the casino. This scene was being shot at Harrah's. The second second assistant director (very sweet young lady) sat me and a couple of other backgrounds at a roulette wheel. The real casino dealer gave us each about $100 in practice chips and we started to play. He was cool and explained the game to us since none of us had ever played roulette. About 20 minutes passed as I waited to hear "BACKGROUND ACTION."


To my surprise the 2nd 2nd A.D. yelled "It's a wrap, thank you everybody." They had shot 3 takes with the actors and a steady cam and we never even knew they were filming. All of us were paid $100 cash and sent home. I had taken the ferry over to Harrah's and it wasn't running again until 6:00 am back to the West Bank where I live. What can I do in New Orleans at 3:00 in the morning with a $100 in my pocket? Ok, one beer.


I am proud of myself. On the walk down Canal Street I had three prostitutes asked if I was looking for fun. "No thanks honey" and I kept walking. I see this as a sign of personal growth. One beer later I looked at my watch and it was only 3:30 am.  I had trouble finishing my beer and just wanted to be home. I splurged on a $20 cab ride just to go to bed. 


Oh yea, the film is called THE COURIER

meet the new boss

The other day I got a call from an old buddy who found me on Facebook. We had worked together at the sign company years ago. Richie seemed surprise that I had moved down here to New Orleans. Things were about the same for everybody back in the sign shop. Richie asked what I was doing for a living since I moved down to NOLA. I hemmed and hawed that the only work I could find was as a background actor.

I'm not sure if he believed me at first, but yea it's where I get most of my income. He laughed and said it sounded like fun. I then remembered my old boss Joe. He cut me a lot of breaks and I owe him. However, there were the occasional sarcastic or condescending comments from him. I told Richie to let Joe know that one of my new bosses is George Clooney.



In Jersey it's called Ballbusting.

Memphis Beatnik

Look for me about 5 minutes into part 2. The detective calls me "hairnet."

Cool Car

This clip has a chase scene in it that was shot about 3 blocks from where I live in Algiers. The car rocks. I'm working again as an extra on Memphis Beat tomorrow. I explained to the casting agent that I had worked two other episodes. Since they were several episodes back she said it would be fine. My first episode will air next week. Look for me at a Bar B Que festival. I'm the sunburned guy.

I'm glad I got more background work, I was afraid that I had become a washed up has been extra.

Bad Decisions

Bad decisions, nothing will make me laugh out loud when I'm by myself more than when I think about all of the bad decisions I have made. Bad decisions when it came to money. Bad decisions of who I associated myself with. Bad decisions of careers. Bad decisions.

I decided to change my life and reinvent myself to be one who makes the right choices when I moved. I moved from Jersey to ground zero of the world's worst ecological disaster a month before it happens. Good decision. Really, I love this city, love these people. I made the right decision. My friend in Seattle said. "Wow, you had to move front row center to the end of the world." "Yea, New Orleans has been chosen to be the host city of the Apocolypse, that's cooler than the Olympics."


In the past three months I have been homeless sleeping in a car, I've rubbed elbows with TV stars. I got to be a twelve foot high Jester leading a parade down Bourbon Street. I've gotten to be a street performer in the French Quarter. I've smoked up with Asian gang members. I had U.S. Marshals point weapons at me, handcuff me and run me down to Orleans Parish Prison. I've walked the same streets as pirates, artists and musicians have for hundreds of years. I've made great friends. Like Waffle and Dr Maad.


Moving to New Orleans, the best decision I ever made.

.

Thanks George...

I am pleased to report that some one at the top must have gotten wind from somewhere and our meal was much better today. We ate with the cast & crew.

We received calls from the casting company on Friday for work on Monday and Wednesday of this week. Saturday I was contacted by a different casting company looking for extras to work on the film "Green Lantern" for about five days this week. That would've been more lucrative, but I stuck with my commitment on Memphis Beat. I overheard several other background extras make the same comment.



Monday we pissed and moaned about the quality of food served to us at lunch. Yes, we are only extras which places us in the category of cattle. The extra wranglers were cool and the day went well. This morning in the holding room you couldn't find craft services with a Geiger counter. My buddy and I went down the catering truck with a sign on it "Cast crew only, Extras go to holding" What's next, segregated drinking fountains for extras and crew? We grabbed our coffee from the catering truck, who's going to argue with two bad ass cowboys. Ok, one bad ass cowboy and an Amish dude.

On the walk back to holding, a homeless junky saw our hats and took us for easy out of town marks. "I haven't eaten in two days, can you spare seventy five cent so I can get a burger?" In unison, my buddy and I pointed back to the catering truck. "Go up to that truck, they'll feed you for free." "Yea, just tell them you're a production assistant." An hour later crafty showed up in the holding room with coffee and snacks. When lunch came around, we were herded into the same dining area as the crew. The food that was left was great.



Like any job, you have coworkers who whine and bitch all day. "It's too hot, we've been waiting for hours, when's lunch?" Shut up, it's the easiest most fun job you'll probably ever do. Be on your mark, do what you're told and shut up so the rest of us can hear the director. Where else can you go to work and be dressed up like a cowboy, a cop or a criminal and be fed?

Memphis Delta Beat Blues or something......

At 6:30 this morning I was dressed as a cowboy in a van with others dressed like Dwight Yokem heading to a Memphis Beat shoot. The TV show needed background extras for a scene involving a Country and Western memorial. I went on the shoot with my buddy "The Bobby DeNiro of background extras." This guy first appeared on TV when he was a kid on a local Krusty the Clown type of show. He's had the bug ever since, having worked in dozens of films and shows. Also behind the scenes, he was once dubbed "The Ray Harryhausen of New Orleans." Probably the most serious extra I have met so far.

You walk onto a set with him and gain creds with production people. I guess this makes me the Joe Pesci of extras. The angry guy from Jersey who knows it all. Bobby used his background skills of Mardi Gras costumer to dress to impress the wardrobe department. He loaned me my hat with the one he uses for yard work. I got a "cameo" out of it.

Man, Bobby was pissed about lunch.
There is a superstition among extras that if you talk to a star, bad things will befall you. It's like opening up a mummy's tomb, you don't want to be around if it happens. Sometimes it just happens to you. Jason Lee is cool. On some sets the background extras are forbidden to even look at the stars. I've heard first hand accounts of how extras are warned on a Tom Cruise set. "If you look at Tom you will be dismissed for the day and not called back." Don't tell me that. I'll pelt him with Mardi Gras beads and yell "SHOW ME YOUR TITS!"

Perhaps I shouldn't write that.

In the scene from an auditorium I somehow landed two rows behind Jason. I probably was in the shot. Some extras want "face time." To be seen in a shot. Not us, face time means they won't use you again for the rest of the series. You want to be as far from the camera as possible. If you are always a blur, you'll always be working. Jason comes in, smiles and jokes a lot. Seems pleasant and is quick with suggestions that carry weight.

So anyways, he takes position in front of me and looks around. "I like the hats, nice hats." He looks right at me "Nice hat, is it yours?" I reply: "No, an Amish rental." I got that blank look that my humor sometimes gets.


BTW That hat has appeared in the following:
Memphis Beat (twice)
Hurricane Season 2008
Final Destination 4 3-D - 2008
The Brooke Ellison Story -2004

It's the only hat with it's own IMDB page. Keep an eye open for me in episode 4 and 5.