becoming an extra ?

Question

im kindof intersted in being an extra in any production such as movies, t.v commercial.. i was wondering how can i start in that ? i'm really not that inerested in doing any big role.. i just want to experience being an extra.. besides joining an agency.. are there realible websites ? well .. reliable aganices as well ?

anyone experienced in this field ? can anyone just acknowledge me through this process.. would really appreciate your responces ;)

please be specific with your responses..like when mentioning open calls..

thats just because i don't knwo a whole lot about this field

btw wher can i get headshots and whatnot ?

Answer 1

Anyone can be an extra in Film and Television.

Unlike actors, extras do NOT have agents who take a 10 percent commission. You simply register with extras casting companies and call in each day on their casting lines to get work. Unless you hire a "booking Service" for about $30 -$50 a month to "call-in" and get you the work. Of course these "calling or booking services" really do not "call-in" to get you the work, they simply know people at the extras casting companies and get lists of what they need, and act as "sub-casting agents". Think about it, why would the extras casting company individually call each and every person, when they can just call a "booking service" and say, "we need 120 people for a party scene". Then the "booking service" does all the work and calls each of their clients themselves! SAG is trying to regulate these companies at some point, but the fact remains that these services can get you much more work than you can on your own just calling in on the casting lines all day trying to get through the busy signals.

The Screen Actors Guild does have jurisdiction over backround actors, however, the contracts only require a small number of union extras to be hired for a given union production, and the rest of the extras are non-union. This is part of the contract that production companies sign with the union. There is a publication called "Extra Work for Brain Surgeons". It truly is the Bible of Extra work. I am NOT one to try to sell books for anyone. But I am in the know about this subject.

Central Casting is the largest extras casting company in the world. (all of the info needed to register is on the site):

http://www.centralcasting.org/LA/actors/registration.html,

followed by Bill Dance Casting. You simply register with these places, and then you work. There is a huge amount of work for non-union extras, and just a small amount of union extra work. As a matter of fact, one can work every day as a non-union extra, but if you are a SAG member, it is much harder to get union extra jobs. This is because a given TV show for example, only has to hire 10 union extras, and the rest can be non-union. If you sign up with a "booking service" or "calling service" as they like to call themselves, you can literally work every day. But the pay is not much more than minimum wage for non-union, although overtime is usually the norm as well as "wardrobe allowance" and sometimes "mileage allowance". You also can get paid extra for using your car, pet, or props in a scene. There are many SAG members secretly doing non-union extra work simply because there just is not enough union extra jobs to go around.

You must live in LA (or within driving distance) of course, get a "Thomas Guide" map book, and have a cell phone and a car. But if you do your homework, you literally can work every day, no matter your experience or looks. You can be young or old, tall or short, overweight or underweight, some one-armed dude, or whatever. There is plenty of work to go around, and Hollywood needs all types of people. You don't even need headshots or a resume, they take a digital photo when you register with all of those extras casting companies. Just stick with the legit companies. There is a nominal $25 or so fee to register. Even SAG member have to pay a "photo fee" to register.

So there it is.

Don't take bad advice. Just register with the big extras casting companies and follow the rules of working as a fim/tv extra. As I said, I am NOT out to sell that book, you can do some research and find out all you need, but be careful as there are tons of bottom-feeders scamming people who want to work in film/tv as extras.

If you are lucky, you can even become "SAG Eligible" from doing non-union extra work, but that is a whole other long story.

Here is a link to HollywoodOS (the company that publishes that book "Extra Work For Brain Surgeons").

http://hollywoodos.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=blogcategory&id=37&Itemid=80

Peace Out,

Alan

PS AFTRA (American Federation of Television and Radio Artists) has jurisdiction over Soaps and Sitcoms among other videotaped and radio broadcast productions. This is a whole different story, and anyone can walk into AFTRA and join for about $1,250

Answer 2

This really depends on where you live. If you live in Los Angeles go here:

http://www.centralcasting.org/LA/actors/registration.html
http://billdancecasting.com/
http://extrasaccess.com/

Central and Bill Dance charge a fee to join and yes that is normal for companies that hire extras. They are not 'agents' they are companies that do a service and that's that. ExtrasAccess is new to me. It's an offshoot of ActorsAccess which is more for people looking for principal work and even though I've never used it, I trust it because of the people it comes from. Getting started is free, I'm sure there's a fee along the way somewhere, but I've never used it so I don't know where that comes in.

If you are under 18, check out:
http://kidsmanagement.com/kids.html

This is the major kids background booking place in LA. You pay a fee to start with them and they get you background work.

If you do not live in Los Angeles, you can see if your state has a film alliance / commission / society or whatever your state calls theirs (some have more than one). Sometimes they post audition information for projects filming locally like whether or not they need a bunch of extras for a certain scene. Do an internet search for your state plus the word film and see what you get. Explore those sites thoroughly and you're bound to find some info.

You do not need headshots for extra work. The company you end up going through will likely take a poloroid or snapshot of you for their database and that's it.

If you decide that you prefer to look for larger roles, then you would need training, headshots, a real agent (who would not charge up front fees and would take 10% of your pay after you get a job not upfront like the ones mentioned above), etc.

Have fun!

Answer 3

It's easy. Visit the film commission website in your state. It's usually titled "(state) film commission" for example: Virginia Film Commission. They'll have upcoming projects and contact info. Also visit the film commission sites in neighboring states. Craigslist also has many upcoming projects posted. You shouldn't have to pay to be a freaking extra.

Answer 4

go to craigslist.org look for your state and city then click on under jobs "tv / film / video" thats a easy way to see if people are looking for extras, i live in a small town and they are always looking for extras, also, look under gigs and click on "talent" they may have something posted there too :D hope i helped!

Answer 5

Since you don't know anything about the industry, ask your actor friends, where you live. They are your best resource for information.

They are your best guidance.