#theyre the epitome of 'oh my god youre able to vote too?!'

[fratboykate]

Could you answer a filmmaking question for me? Why are extras and(?) crew not allowed to talk to the main cast?

If I had to hazard a guess, it would be that the extras used to bombard the cast with "here's my resume, please talk to the casting directors about me [insert big name actor here]!" But that would suck if they ruined it for everyone because I couldn't imagine if I just couldn't talk to the people I work with because they've got higher billing than me.

listen, are SOME actors absolutely assholes who demand no one even look at them in passing? yes. they're the minority. there's very few of those in the grand scheme of things. ive never had the displeasure of working with a cast member who wouldn't let the crew talk to them. even the absolute worst actress ive ever worked with RELIED on the crew to bolster her tantrums and unpleasant behavior. crew and actors typically get along or at the very least have cordial professional relationships.

extras (background as we call them) is a different beast. they do have different holding areas and are, for the most part, instructed by the AD teams to keep their interactions with main talent to a minimum. unless they obviously have to say a line to them or bump into them or something. you get the point. this is going to sound horrible and it might sound like a crazy generalization but, it's just a fact. the hard majority of people who work background can be some of the most annoying group of humans ever assembled. most of them lack absolute self-awareness and just...don't act like normal human beings half the time??? why. i don't know. anyone can make an actor profile on those background casting pages. if you have a decent enough photo to pass as a headshot, you person reading this, could make one right now and maybe end up on a scorcese set tomorrow. it's not like you "cast" for background. you're just trying to fill a restaurant or a street or a theater with bodies. you pull a diverse group of people to make it look lived in and that's it. casting directors don't really "audition" these folks if all they're doing is like...eating in the background of a diner scene.

imagine a hypothetical scenario where the worst person on twitter decides they want to get into the industry and that the easiest way they can think of to get on set is by being background. they get hired and they end up on set and a scene with...idk...scarjo. do you really want that person being able to walk up to her and talk about her at any time? acting is hard work, a lot of it involving some intense emotional heavylifting. the last thing i, as the director, would want is to have some clueless background talking my actress' head off and taking my lead out of their zone simply because they want to be "cool".

and yes, you're not wrong when you assume it's common for background to be walking around set thinking if the director only talked to them they would replace the leading man the next day. a lot of them are beyond delusional. so you just...contain them lol. they get their own areas and get to hang out with just each other. sure, a lot of it is for practical logistical reasons, i know. but some of the most dreaded days on set are when you have big crowd scenes because then you have to deal with the people who are supposed to be the crowd and most of them are fucking insufferable. literally background people are like: the weird trenchcoat guy from your high school, the worst of the theater kids, three different flavors of karens, your crazy cousin who believes q is real and everyone on hollywood is satanic...but still wants to break in, and then some random creepy old guy who says the weirdest sexual/racist/misogynistic shit for no reason. those are the people who apply to be background lol. you wouldn't want to be in that holding room/interact with them unless you absolutely had to. that's just a fact. any person who has worked in production will tell you the same thing.