Have you ever been an extra in a movie?

Yes. I was in an episode of a Japanese TV drama with another westerner (a woman) eating in a hotel restaurant. It took about 4 hours total.
I got paid ~$75 for my 7 seconds of face time. That’s $36,000+ per hour. Not a bad wage rate. That’s more than Madonna makes!
I did not sign up with any agency. My friend saw the ad in the newspaper and asked me to be her date. It was an offer I could not refuse.

I’ve been on ESPN multiple times. Does that count?

Yes. I don’t remember the name of the movie. Some drug running movie filmed in Miami. I just walked down the street as background, I don’t even know if I made it into the movie. My ourse was robbed where they told us to leave our belongings. They stole all my money and drugs in my purse (ironic now that I think of it). Luckily, I only had about $15 on me and the drugs were not important, I don’t remember what medicine it was, but nothing you can sell on the street. It sucked though. No one wants to be robbed and I was very broke at the time. Part of the reason I did the extra spot was because I was broke. I think I was paid $40, but I had spent about $4 in gas round trip, like I said $15 stolen, I had to pay taxes on the $40. Oh, and a cop pulled me over for speeding on the way home, but I told him I had been robbed and he gave me a warning.

@JLeslie And I thought I was having a bad day yesterday.

Not me, but a buddy of mine at college. This was during the filming of The Exorcist in around 1973 in Washington, DC.

He was filmed walking down the steps at Georgetown Univ – where the priest was supposedly from. He made something like $250 – a lot of drinking money in 1972 – but he was there all day and they made him (and the others) stay there all day for multiple takes.

In the end, you see him in the movie for about 4 seconds. But when I see the movie on TV, I say to myself “I know that guy!”.

No, but two of my friends. One is in bedazzled. He is one of the labeled people in the opening. The other was an extra in Braveheart. He was one of many bearded men, and such a huge crowd, we have never seen him clearly enough to say, “Hey, that is him!”
I don’t know how much either got paid. I never asked. The one who was in Bedazzled does it whenever he can, but that was the most notable, and noticeable. He says it pays part of his travel, so that makes it worth it to him, but he did say some of those agencies are a rip off. He likes to answer ads better. The other friend is no longer around here. It was a long time ago. I believe he said they were so desperate for men with full beards, they approached him. It didn’t pay much, but he agreed just to know he had bragging rights.

Yes, in Elementary school the whole bus load of us. No we didn’t get paid scale. I lived in Los Angeles and we were on a field trip to a museum. On the way back to school the driver was flagged down.They asked him to drive slowly through the intersection and around the block a couple of times.

I did a day on “In Plain Sight” (TV) and “Odd Thomas” (film). Generally, it is super tedious work—lots of waiting for the crew to set up the shot and long days. (Also, other folks who have signed up to be extras are generally not my kind of folks, but your experience may differ.) I was luckier with the TV episode because we had kids on set which meant a shorter day by law.

You can count on being fed well, though. The food is almost always very good and there’s plenty of it.

I signed on with On Location Casting. It hasn’t cost me a dime, although there’s an option to pay for premium services or something. Basically, everything is online and on facebook. Your profile is on their website, and when they need talent, they put out a call in their facebook page. If you meet the criteria and are available, you respond to their post and they book you for that day. Next they send instructions about where to go and what to wear. Pretty straightforward all around.

@kevbo – that’s cool. There are an increasing number of films and TV series being made out here in Georgia – I will have to look into how (and if) I could be an extra in one of them.

I was an unpaid background extra in the movie Quicksilver starring Kevin Bacon. It was filmed where I work.

My friend and I were just watching a movie being made, when the assistant director grabbed us, pointed towards the action, and said “Walk!” The movie was “The End Of The World In Our Usual Bed In A Night Full Of Rain”, and starred Gioncarlo Giannini and Candice Bergen.
We were cut out of the final product.
We were unpaid, and signed no papers.

Umm… no, not an extra in any Hollywood film, but was an extra in a small indie film.

I’ve been in quite a few videos—I would not say they were films because they’re not what we consider movies, but more like short documentaries. I’ve directed a feature length movie though.

@filmfann Wow, I’ve never heard of such a thing! Did the AD think you were actually extras, or was he just breaking the rules, I wonder?

A couple of my relatives were extras in a film. They made some money, and are visible on-screen. @zenzen, I’m surprised to hear you ask what it cost people. As far as I know, extras never pay for anything related to their experience (well, aside from @JLeslie‘s theft story).

Did you know that in the movie, A Few Good Men, that black guy who plays a marine opposite that not-so-bright white guy, wasn’t even an actor, originally. He was actually part of the filing crew, and the producer just said, “You’re in the movie.” He just fit the part so perfectly.

I did some of the stunts in Wall E, flying stuff mostly, yes, that was me in the Eve suit.

* filming *

No, but my grandfather and uncle were extras in The Brinks Job

No, no chance for me. I think that will be very funny.

I do not have an agent and am not a member of SAG. I attended open auditions for two movies and was fortunate have been given parts. I had a small speaking part in “Dig Two Graves” that may have been left on the cutting room floor. I had a major role in “Under These Same Stars – the Céladon Affair” produced by Celadon films LLC, a local production company. I thoroughly enjoyed working with both film companies and would love to do it again.