Notes from the Movie Set

I know that I'm allowed to say that I've been busy for the past several days, working as an extra on "Steel Town," starring Maggie Gyllenhaal and Viola Davis. A confidentiality agreement keeps me from saying much else about the experience.

It's hard to be both movie employee and movie writer. I did keep a diary, so that in 3 years when the agreement expires, I can publish it. But for now, I'll share some things that don't impact anyone's privacy, or give anything away about the movie. I believe that what I'm sharing in this article is safe to share.

When you're a film student, you can sometimes get away with asking bored techs questions, by beginning, "Hey, can I ask you a question, as a film student?" I am thrilled to report that in every single case I did this (I chose my spots), people were nice about it; I understand from industry friends that this is not always the case.

One of the very cool individuals I spoke with was Greg Lundsgaard, a cameraman. I didn't realize until I looked him up on IMDB later that this guy has done tons of cool things! He answered my tech-nerd question and mentioned during our conversation that he had shot the pilot to LOST (only one of my favorite TV shows, ever).

When I asked him what the biggest challenge had been when shooting in Hawaii, I got an unexpected answer. Apparently, it isn't heat that troubles productions there, but rain. He said it will rain for two hours and then stop for two hours, on and off, all afternoon. Productions there take longer because of extra measures required to keep equipment dry, and because you only have so long before the rain comes back and then when it leaves, the angle of daylight has shifted.

I was really grateful that he spared me a couple of minutes, because I enjoyed, and learned a lot from our conversation. What a gracious guy!

There's a lot of terminology on a movie set that I hadn't learned at school. For instance, at the end of a take, they'll either say "back to one," which means, we have to do this again, so get back in the place you are at the beginning of the shot, or they'll say "check the gate," which means they have what they need and can continue to the next shot.

"Check the gate," I was told by another person on the production, refers to the slate that's clapped in front of the camera to give the editors a reference as to which scene/shot/take it is. Before each new shot, they have to wipe off the clapboard (which sort of shuts like a gate) to write the new information on it to prepare for the next set of takes. Usually, everyone in the room cheers once the director announces to "check the gate," because it means we don't have to do that same thing for the 38th time.

One of the most amazing things to me was the size of the cameras being used. The ones I use at school are digital, and are probably as long as my forearm and outstretched hand. These cameras use actual film, and are easily about 4 feet long. I'd fall over wielding one.

I will say that "Steel Town" will need some 800 brand new extras who have not yet appeared in the film, for Monday, July 18; if you ever wanted to see what it's like to be an extra, this one day commitment is a good way to do that and also earn some spare cash. If you are interested, e-mail a photo of yourself, your name, age, contact information and that you are hoping to get in for July 18, to: castingpgh@gmail.com.

If you do decide to sign up for the production, something I highly recommend, here is some advice I'll offer based on lessons I learned the hard way:

• DEFINITELY bring a water bottle.
• Bring reading material, some small snacks, two forms of ID and a small flashlight (if they have you parking in a cemetery and walking back to your car at night) in a backpack or very large purse.
• Be prepared to stay upwards of 12 hours from your call time (but...time is money!).
• You will be standing in line a lot, and may be standing, sitting, or walking a lot on the set as well; if this isn't something you can do, bring Ibuprofen or don't sign up.
• I would not recommend bringing a laptop. Even if you get the chance to use it (unlikely), there may not be WiFi or an electrical outlet you can use; and you aren't going to want to leave your laptop alone at the base camp OR carry it all day if you can't use it.