Some local residents got a taste Monday of what it's like to be in a Hollywood movie. A movie crew spent the day in the old Safeway parking lot along Highway #12 in Steinbach, filming a scene for the movie 'How It Ends', which is about the apocalypse. Stars like Forest Whitaker and Theo James were on the set. One of the extras was Tom Doerksen of Steinbach. He relates a story about how fame can be fleeting.
"I was in a car, that was my role. This guy says to me; 'Hey, can you be a guy who can just peel out there when we yell action?' And I'm like, wow, it's my chance, of course I can. So he asks me to pull over there and I'm excited that I'm going to be in the movie. So I get to my point, and the guy goes; 'Your gas tank is on the wrong side, take your car over there.' Then they put my car on the side and that's where it sat from 10:30 til 6:30."
Doerksen says he had another chance in the evening and did one take of a small part. But then, just before they were going to do a second take, he was told they didn't need it.
Lorna Sobering of Steinbach was also an extra who took part in filming. She says it was neat to be near one of the stars.
"I remember the first time I saw Forest Whitaker. He was walking down between the parked vehicles and we had just done our scene and it was surreal, just to see him walking there in front of us, not that far away, it was really, really cool."
Sobering says she played the role of a person anticipating the end of the world, frantically trying to get into a grocery store to buy food. She tells us learned first-hand how movie-making is a very slow methodical process.
"You're sitting outside in the hot sun and just waiting and then re-doing everything you just did, probably twenty times. It's very repetitive but it's very awesome at the same time because it's such a different experience."
Cheryl Fast Sobering of Steinbach was also hired as an extra and outlines her role.
"I had a movie husband and we had a shopping cart with us and we were told to walk, in a hurry, clear across the parking lot, which actually happened to be right beside the action where Forest Whitaker and Theo James were doing their little bit. It was fun to stroll right past them."
All three agree it was a long day with a lot of down time but say it was also a very worthwhile experience.
Fri, Apr 26, 1:00 PM
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