I don't think I told you - I got to be in a movie last year. Part of the film, PRISONERS, was filmed at my hospital and I got to spend a couple of days hanging out with Hugh Jackman, Terrance Howard, Viola Davis, Jake Gyllehal and Maria Bello.
Last March some administrators at my hospital walked through the ER and asked if anyone would like to be an extra in a movie they were making in the hospital (they wanted real nurses and docs to be extras). Always up for a new adventure and learning the inner working of the process - I said yes!
I never blogged about my three days of stardom. It's a great story. Now that the Oscars are over and I didn't win the Oscar for "best 1 second in a film" - I thought I would record the events for posterity.
I played a nurse in a hospital - Big stretch to do the acting but I managed. We weren't told the story line except for the short scenes we were in. We spent 15 hours the first day and most of the next two days filming short scenes and waiting/sitting around and more waiting for the filming to take place.
So my big scene is when Hugh Jackman runs out of a hospital room and down the hall. I'm the nurse that comes out of a room on the right of the screen and Hugh Jackman almost runs me over and I stand on the left side of the hallway while Jake G. runs by. I'm on screen for maybe 1 second, you can only tell it's me by my red hair - but I actually had to act to do the part. We filmed that scene 6 times ( a couple of times Hugh really almost ran me over and came back and said "are you ok?"). I was told I didn't react enough when people ran down the hall (I only stepped out of the way the first time) - the director asked me - "is this what you would do if someone really came running down the hallway - throw your purse in the air or something?" I said "Yes, I work in the emergency room - I just step to the side and let them run!" So I worked on acting a bit more surprised and ended up in the movie. The funny thing is - as I watched the scene I realized I was also at the other end of the hall at the desk directing patients when the camera looks the other way (scene filmed at different times). Only I would notice it was me.
And probably the star of the show was my little tan Honda. She got to be in a close up - in the parking lot as Hugh Jackman drives away and jumps the curb with my Honda just to the right of his truck after a red car moves out of the way.
I got to see how meticulous the art of film making is. Reconstructing and making details that never end up on the movie (like re-numbering all the files in a closet that was never on film), details like how even the parked cars in the movies are staged and the "random" people walking down the street are intentional, how making a real IV bag drip not just hang. Talking with the stunt men about how crash scenes are done. And, the process that I've always wondered if it was real - yes, they say "quiet on the set" and "action," yes, they have doubles for all the characters, yes, people are very particular about the food they eat on breaks - no phones or cameras on set or you leave the film immediately.
I did get to hobnob with the stars - While taking a break at the coffee/snack table I bumped into Viola Davis and her daughter, eating in the massive circus size tent in the parking lot I ate meatloaf with Jake Gyllenhall, Terrance Howard entertained us with jokes while we waited for a scene. One scene I was at the nurses station and had been right in front of Hugh Jackman's double for a couple of hours, I looked up and then there was Hugh. He talked to the three of us and later came and played hearts at the computer at the nurses station while we all waited for the next scene.
We ate incredible meals with the crew and cast and got to see the process and hardwork of film making. So glad for the opportunity. So if you Redbox the movie you can see my short stardom at around 1:58 until 2:01. The movie itself is a bit different artistically but an ok movie.
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