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So You Wanna Be An Extra...

Are you a masochist? Do you enjoy standing around for hours on end waiting to be told what to do? Or maybe you're just plain lazy. If this sounds like you, then being an extra might be right up your alley.

Extras fill up the background of a scene so it looks like a realistic environment to the viewer. They might be walking down a street or eating dinner in a restaurant while the actors say their lines.

You on the other hand will never have any lines to speak. If you did, you wouldn't be called an extra. As an extra, you will get a flat rate of $65 for a 12-hour day.

If you're lucky, you could become a "featured extra." This is when the director decides to have you in focus for the scene or to cut away to a shot of you. For your promotion, you can make anywhere from $75-$125 a day.

Once every thousand blue moons, the director will hand the featured extra a line to speak, making it a speaking part. This of course means more money and a screen credit that every actor would love to have.

Even though you'll be around the stars, don't think for a moment though that you'll be eating with the stars.or even talking to them. Usually, extras are fired if they try to start up a dialogue with one of the celebrities on the set. Most of them don't want to be bothered by these peons that want autographs or are dying to talk to them about the extra's favorite movie they were in.

So what are the benefits to having this kind of thankless job, aside from finally having the time to finish that great book you started? Well, you do get to eat great food from craft services all day long. Of course, if you're on a diet, this could also be a bad thing...

As you see, you're not going to get rich making extra work a career choice. But if you love being around the stars and want a lot of free time to read, write, eat, or whatever else you can do on a movie set, than this can be enjoyable work.

Actors interested in extra work can find jobs at Explore Talent.

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