There's not a whole lot to learn about being an extra. It's neither glamorous nor difficult and nonunion extra jobs for twenty-somethings are very easy to come by. The lampposts in Los Angeles are covered with flyers seeking cattle, er, extras. I did it for the cash and because, if you do it often enough, you increase your chances of getting into the union (which I did, after some 13 grueling months).
Never pay for the "chance" to be an extra; not in Los Angeles. I made the mistake of volunteering to be an extra a few times, but wised up after a few months. My guess is, the producers of Embrace of the Vampire paid this acting teacher to bus down some cattle and probably paid far less than even nonunion extras cost. I know this teacher was getting paid by the students and that they were not getting paid to be on the film.
Another inside story: Someone stole a silver pin belonging to a crewmember. She was near tears because it had sentimental value. Never leave anything of value lying around on a set.
And some trivia: John Stanley says this film was "originally conceived as The Nosferatu Diaries," but on the set, we were told the working title was The Collector.
Embrace of the Vampire is a decent time-killer...barely. If you're looking for horror, there are hundreds of better films. Dozens of better vampire films. Even many superior erotic vampire films — Vampyres (British, 1975) comes to mind.
But if you're looking for Milano nudies, this is the film to see.
Article comments
1 - TimP
Hi, I'm looking for someone who owns the "Embrace of the Vampire" DVD, I need less than 20 Mb of the file VTS_01_3.VOB. [Personal contact info deleted]
I'm sure You'd like some of my stuff.
Thanks.