The Truth About Being an Extra: How to Become a Good Background Actor

Jo Kelly
August 2 Productions (2005)
ISBN 0977187802
Reviewed by Sandra MacLean for Reader Views (#/06)

This is a quick read that is full of interesting tidbits of information providing a rare glimpse into the world of working as a background actor in the movies. It is not a detailed guide by any means but it does give the reader an overview of many things aspiring “extra” needs to consider as they travel this career path.

Author Jo Kelly comes across as knowledgeable and very personable in her style of writing. Kelly generously shares her knowledge to help newcomers avoid some of the mistakes she made. Her numerous stories from the trenches offer insights into how the real world works and serves up helpful warnings for the neophyte.

The author offers many very specific recommendations with all the necessary contact details. Unfortunately, for readers outside California, the contacts in “The Truth About Being An Extra” seem to only apply for those in Los Angeles (Hollywood). Other interested readers could probably use these listings as a guide and seek out comparable resources in their own part of the world. For example, Canadian actors might find the book useful for its general advice but then need to go a step further. They would need to seek out the agents, agencies, and specific organizations that are relevant in Canada if that’s where they plan to start their career as a background actor.

Kelly discusses both general and specific issues. She mentions child actors, parents of child actors, and actors with disabilities as examples of situations with unique considerations. The glossary of the vocabulary used in the industry adds even more clarity.

As a complete outsider to the world of movie making, I came away feeling I had a bit of insider knowledge about the day-to-day reality of a career as a movie extra. It was a bonus to also learn Kelly’s fascinating personal story about how she happened to write this book. Widowed in the early 1990’s, her original goal was to make a career change by breaking into the world of background acting! Once she learned to be a good movie extra, she then moved on to give presentations, run seminars, and write this book.

What makes this story within the story so interesting is that she had a major hurdle to overcome first – she had to conquer her fear of public speaking. She gladly credits Toastmasters for helping her deal with that challenge. And the rest, as they say, is history.

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