In the movies

Ok folks, I've been selected to be an extra in a movie. Turns out it is The Lone Ranger with Johnny Depp, Helena Bonham Carter, Barry Pepper, Dwight Yoakam, Tom Wilkinson and a lot of other faces I recognize. Pretty exciting. I'll be a railroad worker apparently.

They have also offered me to go to a 4 day boot-camp for learning how to lay track they way they did back then. This is considered "hard labor" and when the shoot is happening when I do the hard labor part I'd get paid more. Go figure.

IRL hard labor pays less and the less labor work you do in a company the more you get paid. lol

It's only like 3 weeks of working but should be mostly boring as hell, or so the story goes from those friends I know that have done work as an extra in movies before. But I'm told the food is amazingly well catered so... plus. Long hours though. They are saying 6am to sundown.

I'll try to keep you all posted if anything cool happens but most likely it'll be a lot of standing around and repetitive movements to eventually end up on the cutting room floor. lol

It would have been even more cool to cast a real native american as Tonto:roll:. Unless Depp is NA.

Enola said:

It would have been even more cool to cast a real native american as Tonto:roll:. Unless Depp is NA.

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It's a Disney production. lol

Pinkie said:

This is the coolest thing anyone's told me in ages. Congrats, and have a blast!

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They shoot lots of movies and tv shows here in NM. There are some incentives for them to shoot here. Had a friend's wife as an extra in Cowboy's & Aliens. You can barely notice her. lol

Another friend in Thor that they shot here but her scenes were cut. Another friend who was in Wild Hogs but her parts were cut too. From that I gather that it's rather likely that the cutting room floor is a very likely place to end up.

poweRob said:

It's a Disney production. lol

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That's nice. They should know better. Depp as the lone ranger. Tonto should be played by a real NA. Are there black people in this movie or did they just do a bunch of Al Jolsons?

Friends of mine were the two apes running in the front of the pack in Planet Of The Apes (the one with Wahlberg) when they attacked just prior to the ships thrusters turned on. They ran so realisticly, they put them in the front then dubbed them in to many.

Depp can be anything he wants to be with enough makeup.

Sexy bitch he is - woof woof

I wonder if I can get any cool points with my wife just for posting on a forum where one of the other posters may or may not run into Johnny Depp on set.

I think I can, her infatuation remains strong.

Thanks

poweRob said:

Ok folks, I've been selected to be an extra in a movie. Turns out it is The Lone Ranger with Johnny Depp, Helena Bonham Carter, Barry Pepper, Dwight Yoakam, Tom Wilkinson and a lot of other faces I recognize. Pretty exciting. I'll be a railroad worker apparently.

They have also offered me to go to a 4 day boot-camp for learning how to lay track they way they did back then. This is considered "hard labor" and when the shoot is happening when I do the hard labor part I'd get paid more. Go figure.

IRL hard labor pays less and the less labor work you do in a company the more you get paid. lol

It's only like 3 weeks of working but should be mostly boring as hell, or so the story goes from those friends I know that have done work as an extra in movies before. But I'm told the food is amazingly well catered so... plus. Long hours though. They are saying 6am to sundown.

I'll try to keep you all posted if anything cool happens but most likely it'll be a lot of standing around and repetitive movements to eventually end up on the cutting room floor. lol

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Sounds like an interesting experience ahead for you.

If nothing else comes of it, at least you'll get the basics of a new trade. I hear the railroad union has some great benefits.

Totally cool, Rob!! I lived in and around LA for so long that it wasn't unusual to run into a production area, and occasionally glipse the actors. John Travolta, Robert DuVall and Kyra Segewick were all up here for about 3 months, in my little piece of Sierra foothills heaven to film "Phenomena", much of which was centered in Auburn's old town.

Good movie! There were frequent sightings of them all around our area by neighbors, since they had rented digs about 5 miles from our house, but I didn't see any of 'em, dang it.

Have fun with it, Rob, and keep us updated!

Mycroft said:

Sounds like an interesting experience ahead for you.

If nothing else comes of it, at least you'll get the basics of a new trade. I hear the railroad union has some great benefits.

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I'd love to have landed a gig with the train unions back when I was 18 or so. Man, I'd be retired or retiring soon. Of course had I stayed in the Marines I would've been retired four years ago. As far as learning a new trade... lol, I'll be laying track like they did back in the 1800's so I'm sure it's nothing like that anymore. I like learning the historical aspect of doing it though.

Truckstop said:

I wonder if I can get any cool points with my wife just for posting on a forum where one of the other posters may or may not run into Johnny Depp on set.

I think I can, her infatuation remains strong.

Thanks

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Tell her I personally replied to your post. A guy who may or may not run into Johnny Depp on the set replied DIRECTLY to you. Man you are going to get so laid.

DiAnna said:

Totally cool, Rob!! I lived in and around LA for so long that it wasn't unusual to run into a production area, and occasionally glipse the actors. John Travolta, Robert DuVall and Kyra Segewick were all up here for about 3 months, in my little piece of Sierra foothills heaven to film "Phenomena", much of which was centered in Auburn's old town.

Good movie! There were frequent sightings of them all around our area by neighbors, since they had rented digs about 5 miles from our house, but I didn't see any of 'em, dang it.

Have fun with it, Rob, and keep us updated!

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Will do DiAnna. My wardrobe fitting is next Thursday but the work days aren't until mid March.

I hope you can take pics! That would be awesome

poweRob said:

Ok folks, I've been selected to be an extra in a movie. Turns out it is The Lone Ranger with Johnny Depp, Helena Bonham Carter, Barry Pepper, Dwight Yoakam, Tom Wilkinson and a lot of other faces I recognize. Pretty exciting. I'll be a railroad worker apparently.

They have also offered me to go to a 4 day boot-camp for learning how to lay track they way they did back then. This is considered "hard labor" and when the shoot is happening when I do the hard labor part I'd get paid more. Go figure.

IRL hard labor pays less and the less labor work you do in a company the more you get paid. lol

It's only like 3 weeks of working but should be mostly boring as hell, or so the story goes from those friends I know that have done work as an extra in movies before. But I'm told the food is amazingly well catered so... plus. Long hours though. They are saying 6am to sundown.

I'll try to keep you all posted if anything cool happens but most likely it'll be a lot of standing around and repetitive movements to eventually end up on the cutting room floor. lol

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have fun with it and do keep us posted how things go
sounds like a potentially enjoyable and lucrative gig

justabubba said:

have fun with it and do keep us posted how things go
sounds like a potentially enjoyable and lucrative gig

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I've no idea what the pay is and it supposed to vary quite a lot depending on the size of the production. Being that it is a big Disney movie I'm hoping that it pays ok but being an extra isn't anything that will ever make anyone rich. It's only a few weeks worth of work probably at an hourly rate. I've heard some will pay you per day, and some pay per hour. Being that they said it will be days working 6am to sundown, I'm kind of hoping its per hour.

Enola said:

That's nice. They should know better. Depp as the lone ranger. Tonto should be played by a real NA. Are there black people in this movie or did they just do a bunch of Al Jolsons?

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Disney and authenticity I don't think go together that well. lol. Think a wooden pirate ship surviving a malestrom while people balance their sword-fighting on a yard-arm.

There are tons of reservations out here for sure to pick from to have gone with a real NA but Disney will sell out in a heart-beat for a bigger name to put asses in seats.

I'd like the chance to see Dwight Yoakum up close and personal. Lucky dog.

tessaesque said:

I'd like the chance to see Dwight Yoakum up close and personal. Lucky dog.

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I think it'd be really cool to talk to Barry Pepper. Read his quick short bio at that link. How cool would it have been to have grown up like that?

Sounds like the coolest job ever, Rob! Congrats!

Rosie1 said:

Sounds like the coolest job ever, Rob! Congrats!

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Dunno... lol

My wife said if they approach me to do a kissing scene that I'm not allowed... unless it is with Johnny Depp. He better have some breath mints because he's a smoker.

Today was my wardrobe fitting. Pretty interesting. It's like what you see when you see the Paramount Studios or something. Massive warehouses. Loads of them. Guard at the gate to double check your ID and name to make sure you were supposed to be there. I was told they were shooting today in a warehouse next to the wardrobe fitting one.

Basically you go in, fill out some paperwork including a W-4 and then get some body measurements, then you go back into a section cordoned off with sheets for you to change behind and a lady comes in there and hands you a laundry bag that looks like a large onion bag which you put your clothes in. It has a number on it that is assigned to you so they know when you come back which set of clothes to put you back into. That lady comes back in a few times to hand you clothes to put on and once your are in the outfit they have a guy who comes around and approves or gives changes to how they dressed you. Then you go to makeup and they decide to put some grime on you or not and then take pictures of you a few times.

The wardrobe racks were endless. So much stuff.

After that you are done. This took a couple hours though due to the fact that in between each step there is a lot of sitting around and waiting.

I did get to see William Fitchner when I left who was outside of the warehouses in some nice black western digs. He had a few people around him and asked one of them to take some pics of him to email to him personally. I just cruised on by, ended up chatting with the lady who casted me and then drove home.



I didn't see him in the cast before on IMDB.com but then I found this story which kind of answers the question:

Enola said:

I hope you can take pics! That would be awesome

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I really don't think this will happen at all. They sat us down and flat out said, "if you so much as pull a cell phone out of our pocket whether it rang or not, you will be fired."

They said that all shoots are really strict about cell phone interruptions but this one is even more strict than usual. Mine will remain in the car so there is no chance I screw up.

I forgot to say that when you went to makeup they chose to put some dirt on you or not. I didn't get any put on me and that's because I didn't have any tatoo's to cover up. I couldn't believe some of the other guys getting the same rail-worker roll as I were all tatooed up. Full sleeves, some on their neck and stuff. So the dirtier the guy you see, most likely its because he's covered in tatoo's.

Fichtner should send Yoakam a Christmas gift. a nice one
yokel


thanks for the update. this is interesting