Sucky Movie Set Tales (long, multiple stories)

[Kogarashi]

They filmed the University chase scenes from the fourth Indiana Jones movie in our previous city (it's fun watching the scene, recognizing the locations, and joking about how they pass under this arch here and suddenly teleport halfway across downtown). Hubby wanted to be an extra, but the line was huuuge. His lab professor and one of his lab mates got in, however. The professor was even able to identify himself in the movie ("Here I am, two pixels tall").

It was kind of neat driving past downtown and seeing the blocked-off roads with all sorts of vintage cars parked on it. It was kind of surreal. And the cafe where Mutt punches the guy to cause a distraction? Was a local Starbucks.

[CorneliaMarieRocks]

I dunno how many of you remember the movie "Space Cowboys" with Clint Eastwood, TLJ, Donald Sutherland & James Garner, but they filmed the NASA parts pretty much right down the street from where I used to live ( I used to live in TX) Nasa Rd. 1 Chain Of Very Large Stores was the sister store to the one I used to work at on 1-46.

Was really cool watching the present day scenes & seeing things I used to pass pretty much daily

[Sheldonrs]

Well, since we're sharing more stories.
The 2nd Juraissic Park movie, the one that part of it took place in San Diego, was filmed 3 blocks from where i lived at the time in beautiful downtown Burbank, CA. The scene where the T-Rex is ramming the side of the bus was cool. They used a collapsable bus. It basically stopped on a particular mark rounding a corner and the front and side automatically caved in each time for re-takes. And the Blockbuster Video Store scene where the guy gets eaten was actually a fake facade on an empty lot a few blocks down. :-) Movie Magic!

[42_42_42]

The Walking Dead is currently filming right here where I live.

My sister was an extra on One Tree Hill for a few seasons. She really enjoyed it, but was one of those misguided people who thought it would lead to her being recognized and made into a star. Obviously that didn't happen.

My cousin and uncle were extras on Patch Adams.

The only films I ever worked on were student films back in college. Those never made it anywhere.

[workerbee222]

Quoth CruiseShipGirl

SE: Yes, but I need to have more than one outfit to choose from. What if I don’t like how this looks?
ME: That will up to the director to decide. He and the designer have picked this out for you and this is what you’ll be wearing.


Don’t Look At Me!

The extras get gathered together before we move to set and a Production Assistant announces that “You will not look at Ms. Star. You will not talk to Ms. Star. You will not go anywhere near Ms. Star. You will not ask Ms. Star for an autograph or picture!” - funny enough, we were doing a large crowded Christmas mall scene where a lot of people had to bump past her.

Most people who do extra work in this town have worked on MUCH bigger pictures than this…..with much better actresses. I don’t think I’ve ever seen so many people roll their eyes at once.

Worked on a community theater production of Gypsy.

Three young women were cast as strippers for "Ya Gotta Have a Gimmick." They're strippers. In a show about a stripper. And Miss Electra looked at her costume and said she couldn't possibly wear it and started to cry. Then she took it from dressing room to dressing room, showing it to other cast members and continued the crying and complaining.

To make this even more ridiculous, Miss Electra's costume covered her from her neck to her ankles. There was a fair amount of nude colored fabric to make it look skimpy, but the deal-breakers were the fake boobs and fake tush. The fake body parts held the battery packs that made Miss Electra's costume light up in various patterns, controlled by the switch that she held in her hand.

She eventually wore the costume. At Halloween, she contacted the powers that be and asked to borrow it. Ummm, No.

Re: Don't look at me!
A movie was filmed here in Maine, I think for HBO. IIRC, the extras here received the same instructions.

[Moosenogger]

Quoth CruiseShipGirl

(as a side note – My husband and I were both on set this night and while the mall was closed, stores were open so it could look like people were shopping. I pointed out a sweater I LOVED to hubby. Ms. Star was about 3 feet away. I talked to the sales lady since there was only one left, but she said they couldn’t do anything about it tonight, but she would hold it for me and I could come in and buy it tomorrow. Went back the next day and no shirt. Apparently Ms. Star went into the store after I did and wanted the shirt, so the sales lady sold it to her. Arrrgggg!)

Mmmmyeeeah, time to call a manager. You could have probably gotten something for your trouble, since the shirt had been promised to you and the employee turned around and sold it to Ms. Bitch-Star.

[mharbourgirl]

Hee, my car is driving through more than one scene on Trailer Park boys. And that bit from the movie where they're trying to smuggle weed across this river and avoid Natural Resources? That's just up the road a mile or so from the house I lived in for almost 17 years. That's MY river, dammit. And I regularly run into dude that plays Ricky at the NSLC in a village just up the highway from mine. Cool guys, always.

[vloglady]

CruiseShipGirl , can you please PM? I'm dying to know who this is.

[PandaHat]

The only film I've had any contact at all was when I was asked by a friend who worked for an independent film company to knit a chainmail vest for one of the trolls. So I did and it was the worst thing ever. The wool I bough was horrible to work with the needles were 10mm diameter and the wool was Arran/?worsted thickness and it seemed to get wider and wider but never any longer. Horrific. It took me months, but I'm told "Joel" the troll (yeah that wasn't his name, but I can wish) was very pleased with it. never again though.

[karl hungus]

I've worked on some films too, from studio to indie, and I always like hearing the extras who've never worked on a film before complain that it's taking too long and they thought they'd be in and out in a couple of hours. Yeah, right. Not only are you gonna be there probably for about 8-10 hours, don't whine that you didn't get in a scene because you went wandering off to be a looky-loo around the stars and NOT where you're supposed to be when I'm sent in to wrangle extras for the next shot.