Semi-Tough

 A cold rain fell the first day.  About two thousand people showed up.  They shot a couple of scenes, but the majority of the time was spent being entertained by stuntmen.  The second day was when we got down to business.  This time about fifty people came.  We were told to wear short-sleeved shirts and look like Florida.  When the director told us to get ready, everyone took off their heavy coats and look hot, and then he would yell "cut" and the coats would go back on.  Long underwear was a life-saver.  The director, Michael Ritchie, would move us fifty people all around the stadium as a group and then set up the camera shot in front of us.  To do so gave the illusion of a full stadium.  If you look very closely on either side of the screen, you will see empty seats.  Since it was a football game, or more accurately a series of football games, not everyone was for the same team.  So, the director split us up into two groups--those born before July and those born after July.  Each group would cheer for their respective teams.  Some people figured out that if they stood up and cheered, then they would be seen more, so their birthdays kept changing.  One day during the week the assistant director wanted to play a joke on one of the football players.  All fifty of us marched across the field and hit the player in the back.  It was very funny.  The lesson learned from "Semi-Tough" was that a film crew shoots much more film than what shows up on the screen. 
 My latest venture as a movie extra is in the November release--"Chattahoochee"--directed by Mick Jackson and starring Gary Oldman and Dennis Hopper.