My Acting Debut

There have been a couple of experiences in my
life so far that I would put in a book of unforget-
table moments. One event was one of the best
concerts I have ever been to...The Civic Tour
with Good Charlotte and New Found Glory on
May 31, 2003. Lalaine and I (and 18 other fans)
got to spend the whole set onstage with NFG. It
was pretty crazy and awesome. It didn't even
feel like we were standing in front of thousands
of people. The last song was wild 'cause we got
to move around on stage, but I just kept hiding
behind people to avoid looking like a jumping
monkey. My leg started cramping too, so I was
scared of falling and making an ass out of myself.
Nonetheless, I felt very lucky to be chosen from
the thousands. Anyway, although that concert
was fantastic, this post is not about it.

Recently, I took an opportunity to be a part of a
movie that's set in my hometown. It is about
Harvey Milk, who was the first open gay man to
run for office in San Francisco, and the story of
his life leading up to his assassination. Sean Penn
plays Harvey Milk and the supporting cast in-
cludes Josh Brolin, James Franco, and Emile
Hirsch. I originally thought I would check out
the movie set to see James Franco 'cause I am a
fan of his. Then I realized that I would be part-
icipating for the wrong reasons. I didn't feel right
the more I thought about it. I was about to back
down on it because I felt bad. The experience of
being part of a movie was more appealing to me,
so I decided to do it. Plus, Ms. Christina Atienza
asked me to accompany her. I mean, think about
it...how many people can say that they have
been in a movie? I know we're only (unpaid)
extras, but it is like driving. It's a privilege.

March 9, 2008- I got up really early to commute
from San Jose to the City before the call time of
the shoot. I met up with Christina and Zheena,
whom I haven't seen in literally a year. Ohh I
missed them cheecas! It was nice catching up
on the way to Civic Center. When we got there
we didn't see many people there. We saw a
marching band and a stage propped up. We
ended up across the street from the City Hall,
where all the other extras were. More and more
people came as time passed. The "real" extras
came out as well with their legit 70s gear. I
really felt like I was in the 70s, which by the way,
is a decade that I liked learning about. The actual
extras represented a strong group of homo-
sexuals, same-sex couples, and transgenders.
Some of the apparel was interesting to see. The
whole atmosphere was interesting because a past
decade was brought back to life. Appearances.
Old automobiles. Scenery. There was even an old
Muni bus. Everything about the set was pretty
cool. One of the extras was dancing around shirt-
less with no music and doing pushups. Crazy!
Before they started filming, a Sean Penn stand-in
tested out the mike and the main guy who gave
us instructions for the scenes spoke to us about
our job as extra extras. Sean Penn came out and
that's when I thought 'This is real now. We're
making a movie.' It was surreal seeing all the
actors and crew involved. Zheena pointed out
Emile Hirsch, whom I barely recognized 'cause
he was sporting a huge curly afro and ginormous
spectacles. He was Napoleon Dyamite's groovy
twin. Maybe his uncle from the 70s. During the
shoot, we all ended up near the stage mixed in
with the real extras. All three of us were pretty
close to the front center. It was weird seeing
Sean Penn standing in front us as he delivered
his infamous speech. We shot several takes. It
was tiring. Weird right? I had no idea I was going
to have back pains just standing in a crowd clap-
ping and cheering for "Mr.Milk". Sean did an im-
pressive job. It seemed like it didn't take him
that much effort to perform a victorious speech.
I observed live that he is a good actor. I also
have to mention that in between takes, there
was a lady carrying an umbrella over his head
the whole time. I would take that job any day.
Haha. Emile Hirsch didn't seem to have to do
much for his part 'cause he was sitting around
most of the time. Oh yeah, James Franco finished
filming his scenes, so he wasn't there. Ah well.
The second scene they shot was one where
Harvey Milk sat atop a Volvo as he paraded down
the street in front of City Hall, with his supporters
cheering him on. That scene didn't require too
many takes. During this time, all three of us were
hungry, so we decided to take a break from the
shoot to grab some BK. We had the intention of
coming back. Of course, when we do come back
to the shoot, our biggest fear bit us in our asses.
A majority of the crowd was gone. The crew was
condensed and the stage was taken apart.
However, Sean Penn was still filming a scene in
which he walks out of the City Hall and comments
on another person's remark. We stood across the
street to watch. It didn't last long. After they
finished, Christina and Zheena were on a mission
to look for Emile Hirsch. We walked around City
Hall and sat on the street for a while. At one
point, Christina recognized someone who looked
like Sean. Surprise! It was him walking on the
street leading to the City Hall's entrance. We
were too scared to approach him. I personally
didn't want to interrupt whatever he was doing
'cause he looked like he was in a hurry. When he
came out of the City Hall, he left in a car. The
man's got things to do. No need to bother him.
We didn't find Emile either, so we called it a day.
The overall experience was draining, but
fascinating. The whole process was fun. It was
an eye-opener for me. I enjoyed everything
about it...especially all the observations I took
in. Definitely a learning experience. If an opp-
ortunity like that comes your way, I say do it!
I would do it again no doubt. Just let me know
where to sign up!

Oh by the way, what was up with the laughing
fest on the BART, Christina? Sean Penn is after
you.