So when Bobby lost his job last summer, we sort of joked around about getting everyone on board to make some money. Everyone, including Graham and Charlie now have to figure out how to "pay rent" so to speak. Well, I thought that maybe they could be in a TV commercial or something, so I signed them up with a casting website online. And then a few months after that, an agent noticed Graham's profile online - and that lead to signing on with that agent. And next thing you know, we apply for an Employment permit for the boys and not very long after that, we have our first gig! Both boys were accepted as "BG" or Background extras for a TV series. Woohoo!!!
But first, we have to get those darn Covid test. Me too, since I will be their guardian while on set. Good news it the test itself doesn't take too long. But the drive to the test site in Culver City is horrendous!! See what I mean??!
Boys having some fun with the mural by the testing site. Too funny!
Typically, the "work" day is the day right after testing. We are up at 4:15am since the Call Time is at 6:30am. It's always so difficult to predict the traffic going into LA, so we leave at 5:00am. We are also told to dress up according to the wardrobe info provided. I've also packed some extra clothes in case they need to swap into something else. Here we go!
Can't really take too many photos but I snuck one of the boys doing some studying in between being on the production site. You can sort of see Charlie on his headphones. I wonder if he is really studying. There is actually a "set tutor" that will make sure the school work is done. The kids need to complete at least 3 hours of school work to get credit for the day:
Looks like wardrobe did not like Charlie's shirt or shorts. So we are waiting to change. Come to find out the trailers behind Charlie were also changing rooms!
After breakfast (yes, breakfast and lunch and snacks are provided!), we are off on the bus to the production site:
We've seen a few production sets while driving around LA or San Pedro, but to actually be on one is really quite exciting. Can you believe it... our boys as background extras in a TV series!! Who would have thought! Unfortunately, I can't really share any information on it, but we'll be sure to share it when the TV series is aired :-)
Quick photo with Charlie while Graham was on set filming:
I've learned a few words while watching the filming and the one I detest now is "reset". That means having everyone go back to their starting point. It's a good thing the boys were just sitting at separate tables (in a restaurant scene) so they didn't have to do too much to reset. But the director did say it a lot! Especially when there were all these uncontrollable noises such as the church bells going off every 15 minutes, or an apartment alarm that all of a sudden came on and kept ringing every few minutes, the loud buses going by on the road, or a motorcycle revving. Oh, and also the helicopter flying by. Phew!!!
We were finally done filming by about 1:30pm. Technically, the kids are only allowed to work 9.5 hours in a day. So in this case, we were done early. What a fun first experience for Graham and Charlie! They absolutely LOVED it!
On the way home, there was some drama on the freeway. There was a truck on fire!!!
Thankfully it was on the other side of the freeway. I would not have been happy with the backup!
We got home at a decent hour but decided to head out again for an early dinner. Oops, both boys down!!!
Thankfully the boys were not too cranky when I had to wake them up for dinner. Everyone is happy especially when dessert is included!!
I'm so glad Graham and Charlie had such a great first experience with being BGs in a production set. They met some great people who gave them (and told me) great compliments of each boy and also tips on how to be extras. What a sweet community! And supposedly, this set was also very calm and thankfully ended early too. So let's see what happens when the boys get called on different sets. Wish us luck!!
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