Hundreds wait it out for the chance of a lifetime

Saturday, August 9, 2003

By RAY ROUTHIER, Portland Press Herald Writer

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WATERVILLE — After three and a half hours of waiting in line, crammed into the basement of an American Legion hall with hundreds of other starry-eyed Mainers, my time had finally come. I stepped before a video camera, said my name, and then with as much emotion and "Inside the Actors' Studio" wisdom as I could muster, I recited the line: "Something bit me. Hurts like hell. I'll work through."

My heart pounded a bit as I tried to conceal a proud grin. Then I sat down to hear the other folks in my audition group read various bit-part lines: "Can I take your order?" "Come back here, you old fart."

After all 15 of us were done, the casting people told us to do group improvisation to this scene: We're at a hometown high school football game, the quarterback heaves a pass, it's caught, touchdown, wait, there's a penalty, oh no, the quarterback is hurt.

We cheered, we booed, we gasped and I added this gem: "Who's hurt? Your brother? Oh, he's OK. Good job, Bill."

And then, in 10 short minutes, my audition to be in the HBO film "Empire Falls" was over. My group mates and I were told that if we were called to be extras or bit players in the film, which will be shot in central Maine beginning in September, we might not know until the night before we're needed.

Fine with me. Sure, I'd be thrilled to play the "diner worker" role that I read for. Or to be a cheering football fan. But heck, I was excited enough with the simple fact that I'd auditioned for a Hollywood movie.

It seemed to me that most of the 1,000-plus people who turned out for the open casting call in sweltering heat Friday felt the same. Just being at a casting call, one of the first steps toward movie magic, was enough.

"I love movies, I watch all the credits to see what job I might be able to get some day," said Breanna Wing, 14, of Auburn, who was in my audition group. "This was so much fun, just to be involved in some way."

Breanna wouldn't mind being involved in "Empire Falls" in a bigger way. She read for the teenage girl character who has the line: "It's not nice to tell a person's secrets, Charlene, I don't tell yours."

Breanna watches a lot of movies, and knew enough to employ some method techniques before she read the line.

"I tried to have an idea of how I'd say it. I tried to imagine I'd be upset if someone told my secrets," she said.

There was a sense at the casting call that this film version of Camden resident Richard Russo's Pulitzer Prize-winning novel was already the biggest thing to hit central Maine in years.

"Empire Falls" is set in a depressed Maine mill town, and the producers have been smart enough to pick the mill towns of Skowhegan and Waterville as their main locations. And those who are chosen as extras will get a chance for some up-close contact with stars Paul Newman, Ed Harris and Helen Hunt.

During my three and a half hours in line, I met vacationing teachers, bored teenagers, precocious grammar school students, mothers with infants, a part-time postal worker, a boatbuilder and, of course, aspiring actors.

Most were dressed in their everyday jeans, T-shirts, plaid shirts, shorts. Some teenage girls had a little extra make-up. Most people just seemed curious, but some had high hopes.

Nine-year-old Emily Tracy of Skowhegan came with a resume, which she had written. She listed her time at Lakewood Theatre Camp and her experience on local TV, and added that she enjoyed learning lines.

My day in the world of movie casting began about 11 a.m., when I arrived at the American Legion post on College Avenue. I thought I was plenty early, since the casting company had announced the time of the casting call as noon to 7 p.m.

But because so many people turned out early, casting officials were handing out numbers by 10 a.m. By the time I got to the signup desk, at 11:30 a.m., I was number 270 in line. By the time I left, at 2:30 p.m., more than 600 numbers had been given out and another 400 to 500 people were in line.

When I got my number, I was asked to fill out two sheets. One was information about my car, and whether I'd lease it to the film. I guess they don't go out and buy 500 cars and trucks for traffic scenes.

I decided that if my 1992 Toyota Camry got in the film, that would be almost as good as getting in myself, so I signed the four-door beauty up.

Then I filled out my personal information sheet: height, weight, eye color, etc. I'm 5 feet 11 inches, weigh about 185 pounds, and have hazel eyes. I figured I'd be perfect to play "man in crowd" or something like that.

But as soon as I sat down to wait, I found that the casting company had posted sheets on a wall with bit parts and lines that people could read for if they desired.

The casting people made it clear that they would give preference to professional actors for those roles, but the rest of us could take our best shot.

There were lines posted for a housekeeper, a waiter, a "difficult art teacher," a young police officer, a 9- to 10-year-old boy, and teenage girls, among others.

Lynne Lyons of Clinton, sitting near me, decided to read for the "difficult art teacher." She was a high school computer teacher, until she was laid off this year.

"I was a difficult computer teacher, and I love art," she said.

I waited in a meeting room in the basement of the Legion hall. Every once in a while, someone with a very faint voice would stand up in the back of the hall and say, "Can I have numbers 112 through 127?"

So we waited. Most of us hadn't brought food or water, and were afraid to leave and miss hearing our numbers called.

When I was called, with 14 other folks, I walked to the front of the room, held up my number and had my picture taken. Then we all took our photos and information sheets and waited about 10 minutes in another line. Then, finally, we went into a room with the casting coordinators, Cameron Bonsey and Dee Cooke, two Mainers who do casting for films in Maine.

We were told that we could read a line if we wanted to, but all we were required to do was say our name in front of a video camera. From the video, head shots and information sheets, they were going to try to pick 2,600 extras for the film.

Many of the extras will play fans at a high school football game, to be filmed at a high school that's yet to be chosen.

Culling so many pictures and video clips will take a while, they told us, so we'd better not sit by the phone. We might even get a call at midnight on Oct. 2 telling us to be in Skowhegan at 8 the next morning.

The casting folks then thanked us two or three times for showing up and being patient.

Oh no, I thought, thank you.

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