This is an update to my Getting Back on Set as COVID-19 Cases Surge post, so definitely read that one first! 

The Safe Actor Bubble

The great thing about being on location during a pandemic is having everyone in the cast isolated, away from family and friends, only interacting with people who have tested negative from the start (and continue to test negative every three days). It is a bubble from pandemic madness and feels safer than anywhere else right now.

Natalia Mann, Amanda Detmer, and Lorynn York on the set of “A California Christmas”

But the production team for the movie Natalia, my 11-year-old, just wrapped, learned there is one loophole: the nurses or medics coming to test cast and crew were not isolated with us. They were locals and as healthcare workers are extremely careful, but also more exposed.

And It’s … Not a Wrap

It was 10 pm on a Saturday evening and we were about to shoot the big party scene—Natalia’s final scene. The background actors had all gone through two rounds of testing and had just arrived for their big moment. The chandeliers were lit, the band was playing, the fake bar was buzzing, the food on the buffet was perfectly styled. Then the producer, Ali Afshar, sucked the energy from the room with the announcement we all dreaded. He had just gotten word that someone who had been on set on Wednesday, and only Wednesday, had tested positive. This person was asymptomatic and feeling fine so risk of transmission was low but production would halt immediately. We would all have to do drive-up testing the following day and await results before recommencing.

Natalia with producer and actor Ali Afshar

The shoot is not a go until everyone tests negative once again. “It’s just a movie; it’s your health that matters,” Ali said. He means it. This producer is one of the most sincere people I have met in the business. Watch his movie, American Wrestler, about his escape from Iran, adjustment into a hostile high school setting in California, and triumph on the wrestling mat, and you’ll see where Ali’s integrity, passion, and grit come from.

I told him that we weren’t on set on Wednesday. Natalia had the day off. But everyone had to come to set on Wednesday to be tested so we were in contact with this person, he said. Aha. Clearly it was someone on the medical team (they are not allowed to reveal who but this process of deduction narrowed it down quite easily).

Medic COVID Protocol

The medic or nurse who swabs each cast and crew member’s nasal cavity wears a mask, covered with a face shield, and of course gloves. The victim (it doesn’t really hurt but can be a little uncomfortable) lowers the nose portion of their mask. The swab is long so some distance is maintained and no one speaks for this 10-second interaction. The Wednesday testing took place outside in a large airy barn with wide doors open. We were in and out in a minute. So I was not concerned about transmission.

Production hoped that we would have our Sunday morning tests back by late Monday or Tuesday morning so that shooting could begin again Tuesday evening. Natalia, who had cried that Saturday morning about having to leave the next day, cried tears of joy that we could stay longer.

Waiting for Results and Exploring Sonoma County

Natalia biking in Sonoma

Staying longer gave us time to bike around the vineyards and explore a woodsy hike in Sonoma. Results did not come back in time to start shooting Tuesday. Our flight had to be shifted back again. I’m sure it was frustrating and costly but weathering these delays is going to be a production norm for the time-being (unless rapid testing becomes more accurate; the Screen Actor’s Guild is not approving its use at this time).

Natalia in Sonoma State Park near Bodega Bay

We took advantage of another day free to explore and hit the Bodega Bay trails. Talia, a resistant hiker, called it the most beautiful hike in the world. She might be right. Then we returned to the deck at The Birds Cafe, named after the spot where Hitchcock’s classic thriller was filmed, where we’d eaten after a gallop on the beach nearby (thank you, Horse N Around!). Not only is the food scrumptious, the safety protocol is more extreme and pleasantly executed than I’ve seen since Coronavirus came visiting—and started making a flock of killer birds seem preferable!

View of the Pacific, Bodega Bay trailhead

Horsin’ Around offers fun trail rides through the dunes and onto the beach

Action!

The Birds Cafe, where Hitchcock’s “The Birds” thriller was shot, in Bodega Bay

Results had not arrived by Wednesday morning. Another call sheet arrived, with call-time pushed back to late afternoon. Time ticked by… no email confirming negative results. Another call sheet. An evening call-time: 7:30 pm. 7 pm came and went. No email. Another call sheet arrived. 8 pm call-time. Finally, at 7:30 pm, the email from the lab hit my inbox (and production’s). Negative! Two minutes later, a text came in: you are approved to work, new call-time 8:30 pm!

We headed back to the party set where it felt like a party, because everyone was so relieved and thrilled to be back. That’s the beauty of the movie business. The grueling part is booking the job. The jobs are the fun part. Cast and crew can’t wait to get there and make magic happen. So they will jump through hoops involving regular nasal swabs, cumbersome safety protocol, and multiple schedule changes without a complaint. I can’t think of other employees in another industry who would. It’s why the film industry will find a way through. Just as we did that evening, when the music played again, the cast kicked up their heels, the director yelled cut, and everyone gave Natalia a heartfelt send-off.

It’s a Wrap!

The remaining week of shooting went off without a hitch. Keep “A California Christmas” on your radar this holiday season, and remember, as you are watching what looks like pre-pandemic normalcy, everything that was going on behind the scenes to make it happen. Congrats to the producers on getting one of the first films of the pandemic successfully in the can and huge congrats to writer/producer/star Lorynn York (aka Lauren Swickard) for her writer/producer credit at age 27!

Enter my Talent Search here

Whether you have an agent or are searching Backstage.com and other casting sites yourself, you are likely to come across opportunities to be an extra or background actor. This means you will not have a speaking role and you will not make the big bucks. The pay—around $150/day on the SAG pay scale—is tiny enough that my son’s agent will always say it’s up to us if we want Jamie submitted for background roles. Most of the time we conclude: no, the pay (and remember, agency fee and taxes have to be subtracted out) is not worth the effort.

Working on a Feature Film like Boychoir

But when Boychoir, a movie starring Dustin Hoffman (Kathy Bates and Debra Winger, as well), happened to be shooting a few towns over from us, we decided it would be a neat experience. After about 6 days on set during the last few weeks, I feel I’m in a position of authority to proclaim the pros and cons of background work.

The Prep School Boys and Dustin Hoffman on the set of “Boychoir”

Pros of Working as an Extra

1. LOTs of time to sit around and get things done. Most of what you will do as an extra is wait.

2. Lots of free food. SAG (if it’s a SAG production) requires that meals are served regularly and “Crafty” is an area with free-for-all snacks and candy, which the kids love.

3. Working as an extra is a great way to learn the ropes on set. From the lingo to the intricacies of how scenes are shot, it’s nice to first be immersed in the microcosm of movie world (or TV world), without worrying about lines to learn or being in the spotlight.

Jamie on Set With the Boychoir Boys

4. Star sightings! My son got to hang out with Dustin and be in a scene with him (of course that was the day my husband chaperoned, so I missed all the excitement. And my husband did too, cuz he was on a work call the whole time, somewhere outside the hotel where they were shooting. “What’s the big deal?” he said. “He’s just an actor.” Dustin Hoffman—just an actor! From the stories I hear on set, DH is so down-to-earth, he’d probably appreciate my husband’s perspective.)

5. You may make more money than you expect. For SAG jobs anyway, you make extra money if you get wet, or work in dust or smoke. You make extra for the number of changes of clothes you wear (technically, the number you are asked to bring, but the wardrobe people appreciate if you bring extra options and you shouldn’t expect to charge for that). Overtime is frequent as well, since shoot days are unpredictable and the schedule often changes last minute. Today my son’s call-time was 6:18 AM (the odd time accounts for travel time, which is figured in apparently. I can’t tell you exactly how that works). But he and seven other boys, some of whom rose at 3 AM and travelled from hours away, ended up not being needed in the morning and by 8 they were released until 1 PM. Thankfully, there will be a “bump”—an inconvenience stipend for that.

Cons of Working as an Extra

1. Lots of time sitting around, not getting as much done as you would like, especially if it involves trying to get your 10-year-old to get school work done. Especially if seven or eight other kids are there with parents who don’t seem to mind if their charges play video games and screw around all day.

2. Lots of free food. This is not necessarily a good thing when you are stuck sitting around all day.

3. There is a high risk of you/your child becoming envious of the featured actors and wishing he had a “real part,” which can turn into a full-on whining session about when his chance will come and how life is not fair.

Jamie Dreaming of a Trailer Upgrade.

4. Letdown when you are expecting to hang out with a bigwig actor when actually the closest you ever get is seeing his name on the booking details.

5. Once you subtract travel expenses, taxes, agency fees, parent’s lost work time, the haircut junior needed, wardrobe items you couldn’t drum up in your closets or those of your neighbors, I promise extra work will not be putting your kid through college or paying the rent. Consider carefully if the missed school hours are worth the pennies in the piggy bank!

Btw, if you think working as an extra will make you a star, read this: Advice for Actors

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