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Randy Sellet |
| Greenville, SC is not exactly Hollywood and I am not
exactly an actor, so I never expected to have any part in an 'A' list
movie being filmed in my hometown. I have always enjoyed photography
but always as the photographer, not as the subject. It took a while for my interest in “Leatherheads” to kindle, but after finding out it was about football and set in an earlier time period, I began to pay attention. I love antique cars, cameras, radios, etc. and I love football, so being a background actor in George Clooney's movie started to sound like fun. Our local news station began doing stories about upcoming filming in the Greenville area and thoughts of seeing cars, motorcycles, and football gear from the 1920's sure stirred my curiosity. It brought up memories from the 1960's of me playing football as a child using my dad's old leather helmet. At this point, I wasn't totally committed to pursuing a part as a background actor in the movie and I missed the last casting call. For some reason, though, I started to feel as though I had already missing out on something big. It was then I decided that I had to make a real effort to get in the movie. I checked the Internet and found an e-mail address for the casting company and asked them if I could still send in a resume. They told me where to drop off my application and pictures, and I promptly delivered them there the next day. A few weeks later, the movie had started filming and it seemed like nothing would come of my efforts. Then one Thursday evening, the phone rang and it was the casting company asking if I could come in for a wardrobe fitting early the next morning. I was surprised, happy, and more thrilled than I wanted to let on, even though I knew that as a background actor I might not even appear in the final cut. The next morning, I went for my fitting in a 3-piece 1920's suit plus an overcoat, scarf, gloves, and hat. Oh, and how could I forget to mention the hair cut and shave? Guys got the standard 1920's cut - very short in the back and sides, and we could recognize each other around town. That kind of hair cut stands-out, even in these days. Also, this was the first time my wife of 8 years had ever seen me without a mustache and beard. I had almost forgotten what I looked like, too. Seeing the thousands of items of period clothing along with the old-timey posters on the walls, I felt as if I had already travelled back in time. How cool! And when my wife and I were out and about in town, every once in a while I would see some other guy with a haircut like mine, knowing that he had a part in the movie just like me! So the feeling of having a "weird" hair style quickly turned into a feeling of being one of the "lucky ones" selected. Within a couple of weeks, I was called to report for 2 days of filming as a fan in the football stands at the Ware Shoals field. Preparation for filming started early - real early - and being a background actor was an all-day event that lasted about 13 hours. Since it was my first time being on a movie set, I didn't know what to expect. It took hours to get the hundreds of extras dressed and ready to go. After we were dressed, had our hair trimmed and slicked back, etc., we had a lot of down time when we could sit and watch other parts of the movie being filmed, and try to analyze what was going on. I was amazed to see how athletic George Clooney was and the finesse he displayed while handling the football. My wife was even more impressed! By the way, there was a monsoon which eliminated the need for the rain truck they had on site. There was plenty of mud for the football game and it was really cool to see George Clooney intentionally diving and sliding through mud puddles on his stomach. He seemed to be having a great time playing around and putting everyone at ease. When it was time for the background actors to be on camera, the production crew turned their attention to us. They were very professional, easy-going, and made it a truly fun experience. This is Clooney's second movie where he is the Lead Director, Actor, and Writer, and you could tell by how busy he was. While directing, often he would watch the re-runs of scenes just filmed, and would direct changes based on lighting, weather, camera angles, the acting, etc. I noticed he seemed very good at instructing the football players on how to move and look good during the football scenes. As for his acting, he's Clooney - I need say no more. For the writing, we'll find out in December when the movie should be completed and hit the Theaters. I have no doubt the whole project will produce outstanding results. As an added bonus, I was fortunate to be chosen as one of the dozen or so background actors for filming in front of the Westin Poinsett Hotel in downtown Greenville, thus a 3rd day of filming for me (I was filmed March 1, 2, and 4). The Poinsett Hotel is an historic landmark with architecture that easily fits this time period. The morning of filming, the crew transformed the front of the hotel and neighboring shops to become Chicago in the 1920's. My big role was to walk out the front door of the hotel with my on-screen wife, Bonnie Dixon also of Greenville, and another couple as George Clooney roared up on an antique motorcycle with a sidecar, and parked about 10 feet away from us. And when I say roared, I really mean it. It took a lot of skill for Clooney to race up to the hotel while navigating a turn over the rough cobblestone on that old bike. Wow! Amazing to be only a few feet away from all this. We were told to leave the hotel, and appear joyful as if heading-out to explore Chicago. Since we were already having fun, it didn't require any real acting from us at all! None of us could believe we got to be so close to Hollywood royalty! A note of interest, that although the old-style clothing was at times uncomfortable, like wearing a full-length, heavy wool coat, the comfortable slacks made up for it. The slacks were held up by suspenders, and therefore no belt was used at all. Nice loose fit! And the suspenders were well concealed by a fancy vest. One of the most surprising things in this whole experience was just how much time and effort was required for a small segment of the movie. For example, the whole day's work of changing the facade of the Westin Poinsett Hotel along with the takes and re-takes by all the actors and crew, resulted in probably less than a minute of filming. My perspective of movie-making has certainly changed in that I have a new appreciation for all the effort that goes into every scene. And now I have many fond memories of being involved in the filming - meeting interesting people, sharing the experience, seeing Clooney and other famous actors, and essentially living in the 1920's for a brief period of time. As a background actor, I wasn't allowed to bring a camera, but luckily my wife Linda was able to take some nice shots at the Ware Shoals location, and Bonnie was able to gather some photos of Clooney and us downtown in front of the Poinsett Hotel. I will always treasure these wonderful memories of a great experience with “Leatherheads” filming, it should be a great movie, and I can't wait to see it! |