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Extra! Extra! These People are Background Actors (w/ Kimia Behpoornia)

#27Audiostandard
Dec 16, 2021·1h 1m
Listen on Apple Podcasts ↗
Stage Premise:

Who are all those townspeople walking behind Meryl Streep in this movie? And more importantly, what's their acting process? Five of the industry's leading background talent leave the holding area to discuss the craft of background acting.

Cast & Characters (5)

Kitty Vichin
Kimia BehpoorniaasKitty Vichin
Georgie Sauce
Angela GiarratanaasGeorgie Sauce
Clara Tuna
Kylie BrakemanasClara Tuna
Ken Kendall
Jeremy CulhaneasKen Kendall
Phillip C. Morehoffman
Patrick McDonaldasPhillip C. Morehoffman

Bits & Timeline (16)

2:35 (1m 17s)
CHARACTER_INTRO

The Backbone of Hollywood: Background Actors Roll Call

A panel of veteran background actors introduce themselves, showcasing their unique names and varying levels of desperation to join the union or maintain their niche status.

"Ken Kendall. It's not my legal name, but I like it. It's my SAG hopeful name."

"I am the only person on IMDb with the name Clara Tuna."

"Turned out to be a rough name to have in this industry."

Ken Kendall (Jeremy Culhane)Clara Tuna (Kylie Brakeman)Georgie Sauce (Angela Giarratana)Phillip C. Morehoffman (Patrick McDonald)Kitty Vichin (Kimia Behpoornia)
#Background Acting#SAG-AFTRA#IMDb#Hollywood
11:25 (1m 10s)
BACKSTORY_REVEAL

The Rowdy Newspaper Guy and the Big Latte Trick (Part 2)

Phillip recounts his one line in a Ewan McGregor film, while Kitty is recognized for her 'believable' handling of a giant latte cup in How I Met Your Mother.

"None of the other background people could hold that and drink it like it was believable."

"That's the trick to being a background actor is being given something and doing it well."

Phillip C. Morehoffman (Patrick McDonald)Kitty Vichin (Kimia Behpoornia)Ken Kendall (Jeremy Culhane)
#Sitcoms#Prop Acting#Ewan McGregor
14:15 (4m 56s)
ESCALATION

The Open Mouth Fee and the Prometheus Duct Tape Scandal

The panel discusses the lucrative 'open mouth fee' and how directors like Ridley Scott allegedly taped extras' mouths shut to avoid paying it.

"I got an open mouth fee. Which I don't know if you guys know about that."

"Those fucking don't do an open mouth fee."

"Watch Prometheus again, you're going to see a lot of people with just straight up duct tape over their mouth."

Phillip C. Morehoffman (Patrick McDonald)Georgie Sauce (Angela Giarratana)Clara Tuna (Kylie Brakeman)Ken Kendall (Jeremy Culhane)
#Union Fees#Ridley Scott#MTV#Litigation
19:30 (3m)
ESCALATION

The Open Mouth Fee and the Tape of Prometheus

Phillip explains the lucrative 'open mouth fee' and how MTV's Kurt Loder ruined it for everyone. The group discusses Ridley Scott's 'closed mouth set' on Prometheus where extras were allegedly taped shut.

"I had my mouth open and guess what, I got a fee for that, an open mouth fee."

"Watch Prometheus again, you're going to see a lot of people with just straight up duct tape over their mouths."

Phillip C. Morehoffman (Patrick McDonald)Georgie Sauce (Angela Giarratana)Ken Kendall (Jeremy Culhane)Clara Tuna (Kylie Brakeman)Kitty Vichin (Kimia Behpoornia)
#Union Rules#Background Acting#Sci-Fi Sets
22:35 (2m 1s)
BACKSTORY_REVEAL

Kitty's $15,000 Platform Shoes

Kitty Vichin reveals she is in massive debt after purchasing custom 1.5-foot platform boots to match Christine Baranski's height as a stand-in. She demonstrates her 'parrot' ability to mimic lines perfectly.

"I got some platform shoes that were one and a half feet tall. To pop on that made me five foot, you can see it, that made me 6'5 like Christine."

"I am still in debt, that is a very custom platform boot."

Kitty Vichin (Kimia Behpoornia)Ken Kendall (Jeremy Culhane)Clara Tuna (Kylie Brakeman)
#Stand-in Work#Wardrobe#Debt
26:20 (2m 59s)
GAME_OR_PITCH

The Background Actor's Shakespeare Showcase

The group attempts a scene from Romeo and Juliet but performs it entirely as background actors, focusing on 'watermelon carrots' chatter and asking about the wrap time instead of the script.

"Hey, what time do you think we're going to get out of here?"

"You can't say that while they're rolling!"

Georgie Sauce (Angela Giarratana)Ken Kendall (Jeremy Culhane)Clara Tuna (Kylie Brakeman)Phillip C. Morehoffman (Patrick McDonald)Kitty Vichin (Kimia Behpoornia)
#Shakespeare#Method Acting#Craft Services
37:21 (1m 20s)
VISUAL_GAG

Vince Vaughn's 24-Hour Abasement

Phillip recounts a traumatic experience where Vince Vaughn forced him into a 24-hour cycle of abasement, including wearing Vaughn's costumes and taking a bath in his house, all while the cameras were rolling.

"He drove around, he made me drive him around in this Ferrari. He's like, 'Let's go to my house. Let's take a bath.'"

"It was 24 hours of abasement. And it was really, really brutal."

Phillip C. Morehoffman (Patrick McDonald)Georgie Sauce (Angela Giarratana)Ken Kendall (Jeremy Culhane)Kitty Vichin (Kimia Behpoornia)
#Celebrity Encounters#Set Stories#Abasement
39:00 (1m 30s)
BACKSTORY_REVEAL

Georgie's Escape from the Wife

Georgie Sauce admits he only takes background acting jobs with long hours to avoid his wife, whom he describes as a 'nag' who drives him nuts.

"I can't get away from the woman. So you took a job that famously has extremely long hours solely so that you could get away from the woman who loves you?"

"I'm a man in America."

"Kiss my wife, she's driving me nuts. I can't get away from the woman."

"Well, I'm a man in America."

Georgie Sauce (Angela Giarratana)Clara Tuna (Kylie Brakeman)Phillip C. Morehoffman (Patrick McDonald)Ken Kendall (Jeremy Culhane)
#Marriage#Work-Life Balance#Toxic Masculinity#Background Acting#Set Life
59:30 (21s)
CALLBACK

The Big Latte Believability Test

Kitty and Clara reminisce about a specific background gig on 'How I Met Your Mother' involving a massive latte cup that required professional-level drinking skills to look believable.

"I had a huge latte cup and do you know what? None of the other background people could hold that and drink it like it was believable."

Kitty Vichin (Kimia Behpoornia)Clara Tuna (Kylie Brakeman)
#Background Acting#Props#Sitcoms
59:51 (45s)
TABLE_BREAK

AOAOAOA Outro and Credits

The performers break character to deliver the show's outro, providing social media handles and credits for the guest and production team.

"Artists on Artists on Artists on Artists is an improvised Hollywood roundtable podcast available on iTunes and Spotify."

"Goodnight, Hollywood."

Georgie Sauce (Angela Giarratana)Ken Kendall (Jeremy Culhane)Kitty Vichin (Kimia Behpoornia)Clara Tuna (Kylie Brakeman)Phillip C. Morehoffman (Patrick McDonald)
#Podcast Outro#Credits#Social Media