A not-so mild panic went through New Yorkers when the MTA announced a year-long shutdown of the subway's L train in order to repair flood damage caused by Hurricane Sandy. 225,000 people ride the L every day, making it the most heavily travelled line between Brooklyn and Manhattan.
Of those 225,000 commuters, more than a few are background actors working on Bull, whose studio is less than a block from the subway stop in Brooklyn. The scheduled shutdown was still a few months away when I worked on Bull for two days in March.
Unlike, say, Gotham or Madam Secretary, my role as Courtroom Spectator was fairly straightforward. Show up on set, sit down, look interested, go home. Because the scene took place over two days, a wardrobe change was required.
All in all, nothing special. But it was the first day of shooting that was a textbook example of the "hurry up and wait" style of work in TV shows and movie -- the kind of thing we're used to, but would drive anybody else crazy.
My memory of the day, aided by Google Timeline, was arriving around 8:30 a.m. The Bull crew had already started working on location in Brooklyn about 90 minutes earlier, but was expected back at 10:00 a.m. That is, if all went as planned.
Which it never does, especially on that day, since they didn't return until roughly 1:30 p.m., followed by lunch about an hour later.
Background was ushered on set approximately 4:40 p.m. After a brief rehearsal, we shot the final courtroom scene in one take. We wrapped at 5:00.
To put it another way, I was at the studio eight and a half hours, on set 20 minutes, but "worked" about 180 seconds. It's a living!
The second day of shooting lasted much, much longer, although Bull star Michael Weatherly, as usual, kept it loose and funny. The actual shoot itself was memorable for the actor playing a high-class criminal from Texas. Take after take after take -- at least a dozen in all, probably more -- he was aces each time, his accent always believable, never wavering. But what caught my attention immediately was his character's name, McCandless.
McCandless? Where had I heard that name before? It was probably by take seven when I finally remembered -- McCandless was the last name of the characters played by Lionel Barrymore, Gregory Peck and Joseph Cotten in Duel in the Sun. They, too, were Texans. This is the kind of knowledge that has made me the person I am today.
As for the L train, Bull background has nothing to worry about. Gov. Cuomo cancelled the shutdown and announced a new technique to repair the line, one that will keep the line running on time, even if our shooting schedule isn't.
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All in all, nothing special. But it was the first day of shooting that was a textbook example of the "hurry up and wait" style of work in TV shows and movie -- the kind of thing we're used to, but would drive anybody else crazy.
 |
| From blue shirt and gray sweater... |
Which it never does, especially on that day, since they didn't return until roughly 1:30 p.m., followed by lunch about an hour later.
Background was ushered on set approximately 4:40 p.m. After a brief rehearsal, we shot the final courtroom scene in one take. We wrapped at 5:00.
To put it another way, I was at the studio eight and a half hours, on set 20 minutes, but "worked" about 180 seconds. It's a living!
 |
| ...To pink shirt and brown sweater. |
McCandless? Where had I heard that name before? It was probably by take seven when I finally remembered -- McCandless was the last name of the characters played by Lionel Barrymore, Gregory Peck and Joseph Cotten in Duel in the Sun. They, too, were Texans. This is the kind of knowledge that has made me the person I am today.
As for the L train, Bull background has nothing to worry about. Gov. Cuomo cancelled the shutdown and announced a new technique to repair the line, one that will keep the line running on time, even if our shooting schedule isn't.
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