Tuesday, July 3, 2007

1,600 try out to become movie extras

Sandy Battin News-Bulletin Editor; sbattin@news-bulletin.com

They came in all sizes, all shapes and all ages.

Some arrived equipped with professionally taken photographs and resumes listing previous acting experience.

A good number of middle-aged men wearing bandanas around their foreheads sat proudly on their Harleys outside Belen City Hall Saturday.

No matter who they were, they all had stars in their eyes.

Hollywood had come to Belen and a call for extras for the Kevin Costner film, "Swing Vote," had flowed through the county like water in an irrigation ditch. Apparently, just about everyone wanted to participate.

They lined up despite the nearly 100-degree temperatures, some sheltering under umbrellas and others thinking a sunburn might be a small price to pay for a chance at immortality or — who knows? — even stardom.

Rose Remmey came with her husband and family. Why were they there? "Maybe we'll get a lucky break," she said, laughing. "The money. Actually, I would just like to be an extra. The opportunity came up, and we thought it would be good for the kids to experience."

Each of them clutched a numbered sheet of paper that gave their height, weight, hair color and contact information.

They'd been waiting about 50 minutes and had almost made it to the shade on the east side of city hall.

Hopeful J.J. Martinez of Las Vegas, N.M., said he'd heard the call on the news. "I've been in a film — 'Red Dawn' in '84 and 'No Country for Old Men' with Woody Harrelson.'" The latter won't be out for another month, but Martinez said his part made it past the cutting room floor.

Lorraine Ray of Los Lunas brought her granddaughter, Taylor Ehrlich, 13, visiting from Phoenix. "I was curious how all this comes about," Ray said.

Ehrlich, who has been in a school play, said she's looking for "an easy part" and that it would be exciting to go back home and tell her friends that her summer included being in a movie.

Don Herrera of Albuquerque had arrived with his buddy, James Skender, who'd been an extra in "The Eye" and "Husband for Hire." Getting a chance to be in a Kevin Costner movie seemed to be worth the trip.

By day, Kerry Bridges of Albuquerque works for the post office. This weekend, he was one of several men on Harleys early to be captured on film.

He had good reason to be excited. "They said they wanted Harleys. I was in 'Wild Hogs' so my friends turned me on to this. 'Come to Belen. Kevin Costner is doing a movie.' It was a nice little ride."

He said he was one of the Del Fuegos in the movie. He didn't have a speaking role, but "we had a lot of fun. I met a lot of interesting people, and it was a different experience for me."

Why do so many filmmakers ask for Harleys when they come here?

"All I could think was this is the Southwest so it has to have a Haley in the movie," Bridges said.

Steve MacKenzie, civil officer for the City of Belen, was on patrol. "I don't know how many people we've had here, but they've handed out way over 1,000 papers."

Despite the weather and the wait, MacKenzie said folks had been pretty passive. "They're here for the endurance run," he said.

Rebecca Martinez of Belen and her cousin, Alejandro Archuleta of Los Lunas, brought along a classic car and photos were taken of it.

Martinez is a veteran. She worked as an extra — an evacuee — in "Living Hell," filmed just east of here on Becker Avenue a few months ago.

And she worked in a Ben Kingsley flick, "Suspect Zero," a while back. On that one, the extras worked all night. "It was nice," she said. "I didn't meet anyone famous, but one of the girls helping me onto the bus was one of the actresses. I don't remember her name but she was in 'Chainsaw Massacre.' Ben Kingsley we didn't get near. He had bodyguards. We were warned not to approach him."

Inside the air-conditioned city hall, Casting Director Elizabeth Gabel and her assistants, Will Arute and Rebecca Stover, were asking questions as they took applications. They were courteous and friendly:

How would you feel about being a teacher? "Actually, I home-school my kids," a sedately dressed woman said.

"Sweetheart, what's your name?"Like many of the little girls here, the child is in her Sunday best.

"We'd probably call you in two weeks."

The interviews are brief but courteous and then it was on to have a photo taken — just stand on that mark on the floor — and the budding actors were outta-there.

Claudette Riley, economic development officer for the City of Belen, was taking measurements — arm length, inseam — of the extras.

At the end of the day, she said, everyone was exhausted. "We had 1,600 people — and she was expecting 500," Riley said.

She believes the moviemakers will begin calling folks this week. "A lot of people were from Albuquerque, but they said that they'd put people from Valencia County at the front of the list. When they film in a town, they want to make sure the people of the town are in it," Riley said.

Filming will begin the week of July 23, the crew will leave and then return at the end of August.

"One day, they'll need 150 extras and another day, they'll need 1,500," Riley said.

Kids from St. Mary's School in Belen turned out because Kevin Costner's daughter in the film will be attending imaginary classes there.

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