So… This is the story of the first time I went on a set. As explained in my last post, I got booked for a background role on a horror anthology show in December 2020 and filmed in January of this year. It was an exciting and curious experience to say the least.

Something to note though, is that my set experience did not start on the filming day. In this era of COVID-19, it seems that the filming industry as a whole, has added a whole extra step to the casting process. Covid Testing. All roles, no matter how big or small are subject to Covid testing at least 2 days before filming. You can’t just go to any Covid testing place. You have to go to the production studio’s Covid testing site. So, two days before filming, I hopped in my car and drove an hour down to Atlanta to the production site to get tested.

Once I got inside the production building, which was basically a huge, stripped down warehouse, I took in the feeling, and it was glorious. I mean, the building itself was nothing to be excited about, but just seeing where TV shows and movies are filmed was so interesting. The whole walk to the testing room, I was just telling myself to get all the excitement out then, so that I didn’t look so green (a term to differentiate new actors) on the filming day. Anyway, the Covid-testing was pretty simple. Go in, tell the person your name, let them stick cotton swabs up both nostrils, and then, done. 1 hour of driving for 5 minutes of testing. At least, you get paid for testing.

Sometime between the Covid test and the filming day, I got an email saying the call time for filming was at 11am. A call time is the time that you have to be on set by, but if you get to set at that time, you’re late. The rule of thumb with call time is to arrive on set 15-30min before your actual call time. Account for traffic and parking, especially if it’s your first time going to the studio. The call-time email will mostly likely have a map of where you should go and where to park, but it can be confusing, so study it the night before.

Okay back to my story. I wake up on the filming day, and what do I see? Another email saying that the call time was moved to 3pm that day. Talk about last minute. The casting director did state that it wouldn’t be an overnight shoot however… Once I got to set, I was directed to costumes and got changed into whatever clothes they gave me for the scene. Then I was directed to holding; a room, or in this case, an area where actors/background are put until they are needed for filming. There I met the other background artists, many of which are also aspiring actors, and then we waited…for about 5 hours. I guess production was running behind because we started filming at 9pm and finished at 2am. It went overnight.

The filming itself was very fun, but one thing that became apparent was how much work went into one scene. Different angles, multiple takes, close-up shots, far shots, etc. Patience, in the film industry, is a necessary skill, especially because every take, you have to do the exact same thing for continuity’s sake. For the scene, all the background had drinks as props and there was one shot of us leaving the “apartment” set. We were told to set our props down anywhere as we left, and then to do the same for every take after that. At a certain point, it became almost robotic. Repetition: another important skill to develop as an actor.

All in all, it was a fun learning experience where I met great people. I don’t expect to see my face onscreen when the show comes out, but it’s a plus if that happens. When you do background, expect to wait, expect that nothing is set in stone, expect freezing temperatures because holding may not always have central heating, as in this case (bring a warm coat!).

In an upcoming post, I will go into more detail on what to bring to set. Thanks for reading.

-Notes from an Aspiring Actor