The Sophian

Issue date: 10/2/08 Section: Arts

If I were to be anywhere at 7:30 a.m. on a Monday morning, I'd most likely be in bed, smacking my alarm clock into silence before falling onto the floor at 8:45 for my 9 a.m. class. But as fate - and a hastily assembled casting call at UMass - would have it, last Monday found two Smith friends and me on the movie set of Ang Lee's upcoming film "Taking Woodstock" in New Lebanon, New York, taking in the setup of vintage cars and yoga circles while waiting for the "background, action!" cue. Not too shabby, especially since I think I've been subconsciously waiting for something like this when I went through the requisite, "Oh man, The Who are awesome" phase my first year. Escapist? Sure. Awesome? Absolutely.

It was the last week of shooting and the crew was clearly feeling the pressure. As we lowly extras huddled together in silver cellophane blankets for warmth, grim-faced P.A.s sped by, leading characters with names from wardrobe to "see what Ang thinks" about changing their look.

My friends and I did a terrible job of holding in our jealousy. Our fitting sessions were less "let's see what Ang thinks" than "let's hope something in this pile fits you." Emily Brown '11 was outfitted in a mini-dress and brand new Keds, much to her dismay. She thought, "I'm such a square." Liliana Delman '11 was in and out in record time, getting a flowing blouse and cuffed jeans that could have been taken from her own closet. I inexplicably took 40 minutes, and was handed everything from a beautiful floor-length dress I still fantasize about to a knit shirt with giant bell sleeves to the eventual winners of high-waisted jeans, a striped button-down tied on my stomach, boots and a rose belt that caused some drama amongst the wardrobe staffers. When asked if I looked too Miss New Mexico 1969, I had to stop myself from blurting out, "Whatever, I'm in a movie!"

Three days later, we were in our costumes and on set. The day went something like this:

5:30 a.m., call time: After getting up at 3:30 a.m. to drive there from Smith, I was lucky if I could stand upright in the line for bagels.

7:30 to 10:30 a.m., Scene 1: We walk in a banana shape across a giant, makeshift peace sign on a motel set, dodging campers and stoned bikers along the way while listening to the bellows of Liev Schrieber, whose costume consists of a purple dress and a blonde wig. I wish I could tell you why.

11:30 a.m. to 2:45 p.m., Scene 2: Liliana and I walk in front of the main character, played by comedian Demetri Martin, as he wanders through a hippie commune. We are led astray by the ambiguous cues of a P.A. and almost walk right into the camera. After getting a lecture in front of the entire set that mostly consists of, "please don't look into the lens - you exist in this world, but the camera doesn't," we are so terrified we grip hands and practically power-walk in all future shots to avoid a collision.

Continued...

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