Posted by A very satisfied extra... on March 28, 2001 at 21:20:29:
In Reply to: Re: Gere needs to take time to acknowledge the "little people" posted by another disappointed extra on March 28, 2001 at 15:20:41:
My experience on the set of the Mothman was not all that different from others posted here, but I come away from the experience feeling very lucky I have been a small, small part of it.
The call came from the agency on a Saturday night-- they wanted my mother and me Sunday, Monday, and Tuesday. (The 18th, 19th, and 20th, I believe.) I was already a little sick and Mom had a trip planned, but we decided to grab the opportunity, knowing it would not soon come again.
We were extras on four full days, and two other days we appeared on the set only to be told to go home, filming was cancelled. On those four full days, though, we spent time in a variety of cars. Much of the 13 hour days were spent in cars. The car I was in on Monday night barely had a heater-- in the end, we turned it off, because the exhaust fumes it sucked in were making us sick. That night we could barely tell what, if anything, was going on. I cannot recall being quite so cold.
I was cold most of the time and sometimes it was quite damp. Unpleasant.
On Tuesday night, I happened to catch a glimpse of Mr. Gere as he ran at breakneck speed down the hill and onto the bridge, past my car. He was very damp and obviously very cold. He ran down the hill more times than I can count. I was thankful I was in a car, at least moderately warm and quite dry. He earned every penny they paid him that night. I understand now that making a movie is hard work, even when you are as famous as Richard Gere.
Our "thanks" for being extras in the movie was the money we were paid-- for, undoubtedly, the easiest job I'll ever do-- and the chance to be part of, or even in, this movie. In the dictionary, one of the meanings of "extra" is "unnecessary." And, in the larger picture, we were all, individually, unnecessary. Richard Gere, Laura Linney, and the rest of the crew owe us nothing.
Someone compared the job of being an extra to working at Sheetz. Expecting Richard Gere to thank the extras for their participation is like expecting the owner of Sheetz to drop by to see the grunts working behind the counter.
It’s like expecting the president of a major company to go to the mailroom to tell the employees there "thanks."
Would the five-star general hang out with the enlisted men?
Like these other jobs, the thanks is in the paycheck. And, for me, the opportunity to be a part of this awesome experience, is all the gratitude I need.