This past July, I had the opportunity to work as a movie extra in a new Hallmark Christmas movie called Christmas at Graceland. The opportunity couldn’t have come at a better time. Earlier in the summer, I had attempted to get a summer job back home but had hit dead end after dead end because all of the places I looked at were only looking for workers to fill permanent positions. I had become discouraged and started feeling like a failure, like I was never going to amount to anything.
Around the end of June, a friend from church who had previously worked as a movie extra mentioned that Hallmark was filming a new Christmas movie on location at Graceland (about 30 minutes from my house) during the month of July and that they were looking for extras. Intrigued but not expecting anything to come of it, I did some research, found the application instructions on the casting agency’s Facebook page, emailed the agency my contact information and photo and submitted an application on the agency’s online talent database.
Two weeks passed after I sent the email. I was certain that I had hit another dead end until a lady from the casting agency called me one morning and told me that one of the extras had cancelled for that night and the next day and asked if I was available. Of course I was, so the agency sent me an email containing my booking information (what to bring, what to wear, etc.) and that was it. I was booked.
Being an extra was such a fun, surreal experience, but it also posed some interesting challenges. What follows is a written account of my experience in a live-diary format.
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A few minutes before 6:30 p.m., July 19, 2018
I pull into the parking lot across the street from Graceland, surprised at how easy it was to get here and sweating from my layers of winter clothes and the anxiety that is building. I’m running late. I quickly park and speed-walk through the gates toward the Elvis museums and exhibits. I’m not sure where I’m supposed to be going. The agency’s website instructed me to follow the yellow signs to parking, but didn’t actually tell me where I was supposed to check in. There’s not many people around, so I stop and ask one of the employees if he knows where I’m supposed to go. He has no idea, so I decide to go in the building straight ahead, expecting to see a crowd of actors, producers and cameras clustered around the giant room. But when I walk in, there’s not a single person in there.
I’m about five minutes late now, and my panic is rising. I call the emergency phone number from the website and leave a message. I consider just leaving and chalking it up as another failure until another employee passes me on her way out. I stop her and ask if she knows where I’m supposed to be, but she doesn’t know either. I explain my predicament to her and the limited instructions I received. She’s friendly and offers to help me find where I need to go. We walk back out, she makes some calls and we head for the Soundstage.
Inside, there’s some guys sitting around a table. I introduce myself, but they inform me that this is just the break room. The guys tell me to wait there, and one of them radios someone else involved with the movie. I thank the employee for her help before she leaves and I sit down, anxious that I’m still not anywhere closer to being where I need to be. Another extra wanders in, also lost, but doesn’t trust the guys when they tell her to wait in there.
I’m finally told to go back out to the parking lot, where a van is waiting to take me and two other extras across the street to the actual Graceland Guest House. Slightly upset that the website hadn’t said anything about waiting for a van, I don’t think too much of the fact that I’m getting into a van with complete strangers, an irrational thought because it’s obvious that they’re part of the production. The driver is angry, more so at the agency for not giving the extras clear instructions, but I shake it off, relieved that I’m finally getting somewhere.
6:50 p.m.
I finally walk into the Elvis chapel, which turns out to be the holding room for all of the extras, and I’m relieved that there’s still a line to check in. I observe the others in line. The girl behind me is the same girl who came into the break room back at the Soundstage. She’s dressed professionally and has a serious, no-nonsense attitude toward everyone who talks to her. I turn to the girls in front of me. One of them is wearing a solid-black fedora, and I get the feeling that she’s one of those pretentious intellectuals. Another is energetic and perky and is telling everyone in line about her prior work as an extra and what to expect. (She assures me that we’ll get a break to eat at midnight, which both worries and confuses me.)
7:00 p.m.
Once I get checked in and receive my employee forms to fill out, I join all of the other extras on the chapel pews. My official title is “Concert Foreground,” and I later find out that there are only four other concert foregrounds. The other extras are concert stagehands, gospel singers and the kids playing one of the character’s grandchildren. I finish filling out my forms, and the costume designer comes by to choose my outfit. I show her all of the winter clothes that I brought in my backpack (we were required to bring several extra outfits just in case), and she chooses a black-and-white checkered flannel, the jeans that I’m wearing, a black coat and a blue toboggan. I change flannels, then I sit and wait.
7:30 p.m.
I debate whether or not to use the restroom, not really having to go but afraid that I’ll have to go on set, but also afraid that I would miss our call to set while gone. After about 20 minutes of agonizing over my decision, I quickly go to the bathroom and hurry back to my seat.
8:00 p.m.
I wait on the pew, expecting to be called soon. I wait quietly, observing my surroundings and the people around me. On my right, the gospel singers are calm and the kids are playing in the aisle. Behind me, the extras around my age chat and giggle, and the dolled-up woman accompanying the kids tells Fedora Girl (who has now taken off said fedora) about her kids and their past experiences in films. I scroll through social media off and on, trying to conserve my battery because I didn’t bring a charger.
9:00 p.m.
More waiting. I begin to suspect that Energetic Girl was right about staying late. I begin to wonder what I’ve gotten myself into. I thought that I was just going to be here for a few hours and then come back tomorrow morning. How late are we actually working?
9:30 p.m.
I’m getting a little antsy. I had read before that extras spend a lot of time waiting around, but I thought it was an exaggeration. Now I’m starting to see that it wasn’t.
10:15 p.m.
The concert foreground extras finally get called to set. I’m thrilled and nervous. We’re led outside to the Graceland mansion, which has been transformed into a winter wonderland with Christmas lights, trees and decorations. Fake snow blankets the ground. A small stage with a piano has been erected in front of the mansion, and we’re led around to the front of the stage. Each of us are positioned in two little rows on one side of the stage, and a few of the stagehands are placed in the back. I find it odd that there’s only a handful of us when we are supposed to be audience members at a concert. (I later find out that they add in the rest of the crowd digitally, which works because they will be blurred. We’re supposed to be the close-ups.) As we’re waiting for more direction, I’m struck by how surreal everything seems. I’m on a movie set at night, surrounded by a winter wonderland in the middle of summer. I feel like I’m in a dream.
10:30 p.m.
Actor Scott Reeves takes the stage with a guitar, and one of the directors instructs us about when to clap and cheer. We’re only allowed to clap when he comes out on stage; we have to pretend to scream and cheer during the performance (they add in the sounds later). We’re also instructed to sway and dance and just act like we’re at a normal concert, but the only problem is we don’t have music to dance to. Reeves is just lip syncing, and we’re all swaying and dancing each with our own song in our heads. I later realize that this time is only about filming our reactions, not the actual concert.
We repeat the scene a hundred times as they try to get different angles and takes, and the director has to tell us a few times to shake it out and loosen up.
Fedora Girl is on my left, and a poised middle-aged black woman is in front of her. In front of me to my right is a kindly middle-aged black man, and to his right is a blonde girl in her mid-20’s. The two of them get along well, talking and joking. The people behind me are the stagehands, including Energetic Girl.
11:00 p.m.
I’m starting to sweat. It’s not too bad outside. It’s nighttime and there’s a nice breeze blowing, but we’re still wearing layers and layers of winter clothing in the middle of the summer. Soon, however, we’re given bottles of water.
I learn that Fedora Girl’s name is Julia, that she’s going to be a senior at a private high school in the Memphis area and that she wants to be a writer and a director someday. I’m excited to find some common ground with someone and tell her that I too am a writer.
12:15 a.m.
We finish up on set, and I learn that Energetic Girl was right. We aren’t done yet, and we’re breaking for a meal at 12:15 in the morning, a meal that everyone humorously refers to as “lunch.” All of the extras pile into two vans and are driven back across the street to the Soundstage (the room that I waited in when I first got here), where there’s a buffet of Vietnamese food, cake, fruit water, tea and lemonade. I’m not hungry enough for a full meal, so I just get a little sampling of this and that.
1:15 a.m.
We’re all back in the chapel, waiting to be needed again. The kids have been gone for a while. Julia and I become friends, and I realize that my first impression of her as a pretentious intellectual was incorrect. Energetic Girl is surprisingly still perky and energetic this late in the night. The Professional, No-Nonsense Girl, who’s one of the gospel singers, actually starts being friendly and talking to people at this time as well. The other gospel singers, most of whom are part of an actual gospel choir, become a lively bunch, cracking jokes and entertaining the rest of us. Pretty soon, they have all of us in a fit of laughter, which I’m grateful for because it’s a distraction from all of the waiting.
2:00 a.m.
More waiting. I begin to regret not bringing a book or something to do.
3:00 a.m.
The gospel singers are told that they’re free to go home for the night, even though they hadn’t done anything all night. The rest of us hope that we’ll be cleared to go home soon, too. Five of us remain in the chapel. Julia’s trying to take a nap. The blonde girl’s in the back, scrolling through her phone. I learn that the other two, the middle-aged man and woman, both have experience as extras before. The man tells me stories from his previous experiences and how he picks up his gigs, while the woman, playing games on her tablet, comments every once in a while.
4:00 a.m.
The five of us are called back outside. We’re not actually needed, but we’re on hand in case we are. As we watch, Julia becomes more giggly and starts poking me. I begin to wonder if she’s flirting with me, especially when she asks me to walk her back to her car when we get back to the parking lot.
5:12 a.m.
The cast and crew finish up, and we’re all cleared to go home. We turn in our forms in the chapel, load the van and ride back to the parking lot across the street. The sky is purple as I walk to my truck. I drive home in a daze and watch the sun rise during my drive. By the time I’m home and getting in bed, the sun has already risen.
8:00 p.m., July 20, 2018
I arrive at the shuttle pick-up without any problems and check in inside the chapel. This time, I know what to expect and I’ve come prepared with a phone charger.
10:00 p.m.
On the second night, we spend much more time on set and less time waiting inside. This time, we start by filming the very last scene of the movie on the driveway in front of the mansion. The scene is supposed to take place as everyone is leaving the concert, as the camera zooms out to reveal the whole street as it starts snowing and the credits begin rolling.
Someone in the crew groups us together. I’m grouped with Julia and an older gentleman who was not here the previous night. Julia and I are supposed to be brother and sister, and the older man is supposed to be our dad. Since it’s supposed to be snowing, someone comes around and sprinkles some fake snow on top of each of us. The faux snow’s consistency is between that of a spitball and a packing peanut. We do several takes where we walk across the street as a family, happily shake hands with another “family” and walk away as we excitedly ooh and aah and point out the snow that’s supposed to be falling. Since the snow will be added in later, it feels strange to act like there is actual snow falling. The snow keeps shaking off our clothes as we move around, so they have to sprinkle us several times.
11:00 p.m.
We’re back in our same spots in front of the stage, but this time we actually have music to dance to. Kellie Pickler’s stand-in lip-syncs for her during the practice shots, but soon Kellie is lip-syncing in a bright red dress on stage to a pre-recorded track as we continue to pantomime all of our reactions. She smiles every time she looks at us, and I’m pretty sure that I blush.
In the movie, Kellie plays a bank executive from Chicago who returns to her Memphis hometown with her daughter for the holidays to visit Graceland and close a business deal. At Graceland, she runs into her former boyfriend and singing partner (played by Wes Brown), whom she begins falling in love with again. Currently, we’re shooting the big concert scene at the end of the movie. We do quite a few takes of just Kellie and some takes of Kellie’s character performing with her little girl. After that, we sway and dance to Kellie singing a “Silver Bells” duet with Wes Brown at the piano. Wes and Kellie crack a few jokes on the mic in between takes, proving that you can be professional and still throw in some lightheartedness from time to time.
12:00 a.m.
We all get bottles of water and get to move closer to the stage so that they can get shots from behind. The gospel singers finally get their chance to shine on stage, and the concert extras get to dance again. I get into it. Kellie and Wes’s duet had been calm and slow, but the choir performed (to a pre-recorded track) some more upbeat Christmas songs. Their energy, combined with the lively entertainment they brought late in the night last night, make it easy to get excited. In between the many takes that ensued, I learn what a “hot mic” is and Julia asks the production assistant if she can possibly shadow the director at some point (to which the PA responds with a kind but firm no).
12:30 a.m.
The crew shoots more takes without the extras, so we sit to the side and wait. I chat with the man who had played my “dad.” A storm’s coming in, so everyone gets ready to take a break.
1:00 a.m.
We get another “lunch” break. This time, it’s a buffet with breakfast foods, along with the usual cake, fruit water, tea and lemonade. I sit with the other extras and learn that Energetic Girl just got sent home for taking a picture with Kellie on set (which is strictly forbidden).
2:00 a.m.
After we get back, Kellie sneaks into the chapel in normal clothes to say hi and to thank us for being so patient. Someone asks to take a picture with her, and the production assistant in the back says it’s alright as long as it’s not posted online until after the movie premieres (Energetic Girl got sent home because it was taken on set). Nearly everyone gets a picture with her. As soon as I reach her with my phone, she gets called back to set. I’m stunned. This always happens to me.
3:00 a.m.
The concert foregrounds are called out to wait with the stagehands in a tent outside. I ask one of the stagehands, who looks shockingly similar to one of my former roommates, if he is related to anyone by my former roommate’s name (he isn’t).
4:00 a.m.
We’re free to go home. I’m thankful to get home a little earlier, but I’m also sad that it’s over. It feels like the past two nights bonded us, and as I drive home, I wonder if I’ll ever see the people I worked with ever again. Nevertheless, I had had a blast. Just like a Hallmark movie, my experience has a happy ending.
Christmas at Graceland premieres Saturday, Nov. 17, at 7 p.m. on the Hallmark Channel.
