Locals flock to be chosen for Tom Cruise movie
wwltv.com
Posted on February 15, 2012 at 6:56 PM
Melanie Hebert / EyewitnessNews
KENNER, La. -- Hundreds of people hoping to be extras in the new Tom Cruise movie attended a casting call Wednesday at the Pontchartrain Center in Kenner.
Halfway through the day Casting Director Judy Bouley said there had been 842 applicants. The applicants filled out forms, attended orientation and had headshots taken.
"We only have a handful of actors in this film so the background actors will make up a great deal of the fabric of this film," Bouley told applicants during orientation. "I can't promise everyone a part, but we will use a few hundred."
Greeting the applicants when they entered, handing them forms, was Bill Rainey who administers a Facebook group that provides casting updates for the public. After retirement, Rainey started working on films for fun and "play money," as he calls it.
He then decided to start the Facebook group "The Holding Tent," which now has 2,122 members. Casting directors post information on the site when they are looking for actors. Rainey said he makes $80 per 10-hour day as an extra and $125 per 12-hour day as a stand-in.
"When I first started doing this I was lost about how to get in the business," Rainey said. "Now it's so simple for someone who wants to get started. They go to The Holding Tent and find out what's out there."
Rainey is retired and keeps up with the group as a hobby in addition to working as an extra and a stand-in. He said he has been in 88 movies, including "The Blind Side." He carries a screen shot on his mobile phone of himself in a scene behind Sandra Bullock.
Applicant Angela Henry, 27, said she has been an extra in five films and she hopes to get this job.
"I do it because it's extra money and it's fun. You get to meet new people and it's a different experience," the Target employee said.!
C asting directors said is is possible to be chosen as an extra if you have a job or go to school. A section on the application titled "conflicts" allowed applicants to specify their schedules.
Filming for the movie starts March 16 and will last more than a month in Baton Rouge before moving to New Orleans for two more weeks of shooting.
Universal Pictures hasn't yet disclosed details about the movie, including its title.
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