By Steve Fronczek Do you ever get to talk with the principal actors between takes or during down time? Occasionally it happens. One of the overriding tenants of being an extra, is that you don’t disturb the actors. However, as you appear in more and more episodes, they start to become familiar with you, and between takes conversations do occur. For me, it’s generally happened when I’ve been in the CIC. I’ve talked with Alessandro Juliani and Kandyse McClure. AJ was even officiating an arm wrestling match I was having with some of the other extras. Another time, Mary McDonnell had hidden her phone on the set, and when she was wrapped, she walked out without it. I had seen where she put it, so I grabbed it, and chased after her saying "Madam President!" She turned, and I smiled and said, "Don’t forget your phone." Her face lit up, gave me a big hug, asked my name, and thanked me profusely, saying that I’d saved her. Mostly though, I try to give them their space, and let them do their work. I do know Leah Cairns (Racetrack) from another project we both worked on, but so far we’ve only been on set together a couple of times. It has been mentioned that a lot of the extras hangout over by the gate nearest Costco. Is this where the "cool kids" hang out on set? Most of the time, if we’re not on set working, they send us all back to extras holding, which is right near that gate you mentioned. If it’s a nice day outside, some of us will set up chairs outside the tent by the wardrobe trailer and hang out. Though we have to be careful to stay out of the sun. On really sunny days we’ll be told specifically to stay in the shade (usually by the make-up department), because we can’t have any kind of sunburn…we are all stuck on a spaceship after all. If we’re in the CIC, we usually stay on set in between set ups, and hang out at our stations. If we’re in the corridors, they’ll often have us sit in the pilot briefing room when we’re not being used. It varies. On cold days, you can usually find everyone in the tent, huddled around the heaters. One thing that I noticed early on, that I find very amusing, is that people tend to congregate in groups according to their costumes. The marines all hang out together, the officers, BDUs, etc. What do you think of Ron Moore supporting his fellow writes and picketing along side them during the WGA strike? I understand why the writers feel they need to strike, and having well known names and faces on the line really helps bring more attention to their cause. The writers, Ron Moore included, are doing what they think they have to, and I support that. I’m privy to some of the details of what the strike is all about, but I don’t have all the facts from both sides, so I can’t say for sure who I’m in agreement with, but I’ve seen what I think are valid points from both sides of the argument. For the sakes of all of us who work in the industry, and the fans who watch these shows that have been affected by it, I hope there’s a quick resolution, and that both sides get something out of it. Right now though, all of us are losing out. What is the best food that catering has set-up for the extras? We eat all the same food as the cast and crew, and they feed us really well. I think the best lunch we had was the day they served prime rib. We also have a really impressive craft service set up. Craft service is what some people refer to as the “snack table”. I’ve been on shows where extras craft service was a box of donuts and a pot of coffee. Battlestar has a full set up with fresh fruit, a sandwich station, crackers, meat and cheese trays, veggies, etc. They treat us very well. Outside of acting, do you have any interesting hobbies? Does sword-fighting count as interesting? I used to belong to a medieval recreation group (NOT the Society for Creative Anachronism), where I taught theatrical sword fighting, specializing in broadsword. We’d often do public displays and tournaments in full armour. I have a full suit of 16 th century style armour that was custom made for me. When I moved to Vancouver, I kind of had to leave that hobby behind, but I’ve found friends here that have similar interests, so it hasn’t completely died.
I also enjoy costuming. About 5 years ago my mother taught me how to sew. She’d made a doublet for me for an event I was going to, and she had such a miserable time making it, she said that if I wanted anything else like that, I was going to make it myself. Since then I’ve done Sith robes, a full pirate costume, a medieval feast doublet, a Death Eater costume (from Harry Potter), and a few pieces for a sci-fi project I’ve been involved with. I also have various costuming projects in the works. What other shows are you working on at the moment? My regular gig at the moment is Smallville. A friend of mine is an actor on the show, and I work as his personal assistant. It’s a good job, he’s a really good guy, and the cast and crew of the show are great. I’m also involved with an indie sci-fi project for the Internet called "Into the Black". It’s inspired by the short-lived TV series Firefly, and the follow-up movie Serenity. Our show is set in the same universe, but it’s a new crew and ship. I play Jon Lee, captain of the cargo ship Samsara. Our first episode "Mined Control" should be ready early in the new year. You can find us at www.intotheblack.ca[ed. note: Both shows have almost an equal shared fan base, not only that but Serenity star ship had a starring role in the miniseries.] What has been the highlight of your career? There have been a few I think, and getting to be a part of Battlestar is one of them. Another was working on a movie with Al Pacino. Standing on the set, and watching him work, was like a years worth of acting classes all rolled up into that one experience. Do you have an anecdotal story related to the show or the set that you would like to share? I think I’ve shared most of the stories from the set that I can think of…well, at least the interesting ones. And last question, is there anything about your work on BSG that you would like to comment on that we haven't talked about? First and foremost, I want to say that working on Battlestar Galactica has been a dream come true for me. I need to thank Lisa Ratke, the show’s extras casting director for making that dream a reality. She’s been so great about having me back over and over again. This truly has been one of the best experiences of my career. It sucks that this is the last season, but at least I’ve had the opportunity to be a part of it, however small. Here’s hoping the WGA strike is resolved soon, so I can get back out there! I'd like to thank you for doing this interview with me today. Thank you for taking an interest in me, and the work I’ve been doing on BSG. Hopefully your readers find something of value in what I’ve said, and will keep an eye out for me on the show.--------------------------- |
