Sawt Falasteen - 'Not just props that eat': Extras seek recognition at their own 'Oscars'

Except that instead of being covered in gold, this trophy for Hollywood's best extras is made of plastic.

It is a minor detail for Armella, a background actor in the crime series "High Potential" who is as excited to get the nod as a movie star receiving an Academy Award.

"Wow! This is my third nomination, I was kind of feeling like a Leonardo DiCaprio stand-in," he said, referring to the Hollywood star's long wait for his Oscar.

Welcome to the 8th Annual Background Actors Awards, a ceremony held Sunday in parallel with Hollywood's glitzy award season -- but for those anonymous people who fill your screens every day.

Without uttering a word, they portray the nurses bustling behind doctors in the hit series "The Pitt," the agents guarding a crime scene in "NCIS" or, like Armella, work as "stand-ins" for stars.

"We're not just props that eat, we are people who are actually there and make the scene worthwhile," said the event's founder, Vincent Amaya.

"We are needed and without us, everything would look like crap."

Since 2018, he has been organizing this gala for these often overlooked entertainment industry workers in Los Angeles.

The winners are awarded a "Blurry" -- the informal nickname for the awards given to these performers, who often ply their craft in the background.

- 'Like ninjas' -

The evening follows the format of Hollywood's higher-profile ceremonies, though with less glam.

Sequined dresses mix with simple jeans, and tuxedos are sometimes worn with work boots.

A dozen awards are presented, including "Best First Responder Look" and the top category, "Best Background Actor Ensemble."

This year, that award went to "High Potential," a show starring Kaitlin Olson as a high-IQ single mother who helps the Los Angeles Police Department solve crimes.

The jury is made up of about 40 members, each with an average of 20 years of experience, who are responsible for evaluating the nominees' appearances on screen.

"Background actors are like ninjas, and only ninjas can determine who else is a good ninja," Amaya told AFP.

Amaya, who is used to playing small roles, wants greater recognition for extras, to match the awards now given to others who were once in the background, like stunt performers and casting directors.

And he has thoughts on the term "extra."

"Calling us extras makes it sound like we're additional, or we're not needed," he said. "But we are needed and our profession should be recognized."

Specifically, he wants a star on Hollywood's Walk of Fame to collectively honor all background actors, as many prefer to be called.

Kyle Humphrey, who works on "High Potential," said the Blurries are "a baby step towards that."

- Victims of AI -

Humphrey points out the hard work that goes into the job.

"The hours are incredibly long. You need to have stamina and be ready to sometimes shoot outside in the freezing cold or in the rain," she said, after coming off a 14-hour day of filming.

"Background actors work just as hard as all of the main actors do," said Humphrey, who occasionally doubles for Meryl Streep and Julia Roberts.

Like many in the room, she knows she is one of the lucky ones who is still working.

Between the pandemic, the 2023 strikes that reinforced a trend for studios to relocate production, and last year's wildfires, the industry in Los Angeles has gone through some dark years.

The actors' strike notched an agreement that protects unionized background workers from the unauthorized replication of their image by artificial intelligence. But they know that many producers dream of replacing them with the technology.

The appearance in the fall of Tilly Norwood, an "actress" created entirely by AI, has reinforced these fears.

"This is coming like a tsunami and we are the first people on the battle line," said Sherry Brown, a background actor.

Awarded for her role as a stand-in in the sitcom "Leanne," she has received offers for films that would pay more -- on the condition that she agree to have her body scanned to train an AI.

"I said no, but when you do that, you don't get the job," she said.

"And it only takes them a few people who say 'yes' to bury us."

O.Salim--SF-PST