They said it was long, exhausting and ‘a lot of hard work,? Bryan and Laurie Valko said they wouldn’t hesitate to work as extras again, after filming scenes for the film, ‘The Island.?
The movie, staring Ewan McGregor (who played Obi-Wan Kenobi in the ‘Star Wars? prequels) and Scarlett Johansson (who stared in the ‘Lost in Translation’with Bill Murray), is about residents of a seemingly utopian but contained facility in the mid-21st century.
The residents hope to be chosen to go to ‘The Island,? reportedly the last uncontaminated spot on the planet.
Two of the residents (McGregor and Johansson) eventually learn that the inhabitants of the facility are actually human clones whose only purpose is to provide ‘spare parts? for their original human counterparts.
The film is being released to theaters on July 22.
Part of the movie was filmed in downtown Detroit last November, which will serve as a ‘futuristic Los Angeles.? In October, Laurie said she heard on the radio about a casting call for extras that was going to be held at the Southfield Marriott.
She and her husband Bryan, both 14-year residents of Lake Orion, decided to try their luck and went to the casting call on Oct. 26.
‘We took amateur head shots in our living room,? Bryan said. ‘They took us in groups of 30 into the conference room, and then the cameramen would film us while the casting director told us about the movie.?
‘There were about 3,000 to 4,000 people there. We had to wait in a long line,? said Laurie. ‘They were going to pick 175 people to be extras.?
A week after the casting call, the Valkos were surprised to learn they had both been chosen to film scenes.
‘They shot for one week here,? said Bryan. ‘We were the only married couple that we knew of that was chosen.?
The Valkos shot scenes the whole week, sometimes working from 5:30 a.m. to 6 p.m.
‘I shot for four days, and Laurie was there for five,? said Bryan. ‘We were in a big shoot-out scene.?
The couple even had their own individual costumes, which they wore everyday they were on set.
‘We were dressed like business people,? said Bryan. ‘Michael Bay, the director, told me to get my cell phone out and act like I was talking to someone.?
The set was designed to look futuristic, including futuristic taxicabs, which were later given movement digitally.
‘So much is done digitally,? said Laurie. ‘I didn’t realize before.?
Laurie even had a scene with McGregor and Johansson.
‘I was in a scene with another guy, and we walked directly behind Ewan and Scarlett,? she said.
Bryan said all of the extras , or background artists as he said they were called, were given strict instructions not to talk to any of the stars.
‘No autographs, no photos,? he said. ‘They said ‘They are professionals, and so are you.??
Despite this rule, Laurie said she often saw McGregor posing for photos.
‘He was very friendly,? she said.
‘In one scene, we saw Ewan and Scarlett play fighting,? said Bryan. ‘But that wasn’t actually part of the movie. They were just fooling around.?
When they aren’t filming on movie sets, Bryan is a director for an Internet company and Laurie is an eBay auction seller.
The Valkos have three children: Tom, 18, Danny, 16, and Jenny, 13.
‘I’m a big fan of Ewan,? said son Tom. ‘I was surprised they got picked…It’s really different, telling your friends your parents are making a movie.?
‘It was so much fun,? said Laurie. ‘It was hard work though.?
On set, there was a big cafeteria set up for everyone, and hair and makeup artists for all the extras, Bryan said.
‘If we were doing a really intense scene, they had a caterer come out with drinks,? Laurie said.
Although they weren’t required to join the Screen Actors Guild (SAG) to take part in the film, the Valkos earned SAG wages, $54 for the first eight hours and then time and a half after.
‘I’d have done it for free,? said Bryan.
‘I didn’t know it would be that hard,? Laurie said. ‘All that running and jumping and falling.?
Laurie described one scene that involved a car crash.
‘Debris went flying over everyone’s head,? she said.
As souvenirs, the Valkos brought home some shell casings and canisters that created smoke from the set.
So far, they haven’t spotted themselves in any of the scenes shown in the previews, although Laurie said she was involved in the scene that is shown where the giant letter is falling.
‘There was nothing there,? she said. ‘The director told us to pretend it was falling and scream.?
‘She worked really hard that day and came home covered in soot,? said Bryan.
The Valkos also saw fellow Lake Orion resident and Fox 2 reporter Kerry Birmingham, who was filmed in a scene for the movie.
‘I’m anxious to see how much they kept in the film,? said Bryan.