use your skills as a model to get cast in films
By Wyatt Elling
Do you love being in front of the camera as a model, but want to get on-screen in a motion picture? You're in luck, because there is a constant demand for trained models to appear in movies, TV shows, and music videos. As a model appearing in a movie is a great way to get seen, raise your profile, and earn a large paycheck for skills you already have.
So, what kind of work is there for models in the film world? We've listed seven ways you can walk off the runway and in front of the movie camera:
1. Regular Extras:
Wide-shots of beaches, establishing shots of popular clubs or a cool high-school party, a wild concert; in movies these scenes are populated by large masses of young, attractive people. No one person in the background is specifically focused on, but many are models and a feeling of hipness is created by having attractive people making up the back-ground.
2. Featured Extra Work:
Every movie makes use of featured extras at some point. These are different than regular extras, because the audience is supposed to pay attention to them, if only for a few moments. Featured extras can be arm candy at an event, a young woman on a beach, someone who eye-contact with Vince on Entourage. They don't speak, but their faces and bodies are focused on. Models are often cast in these positions to create a heightened movie atmosphere full of beautiful, poised people. One of the most memorable examples of the featured extra is Christie Brinkley's steamy appearance in National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation.
3. Playing a Model:
Many movies and TV shows have scenes that take place at fashion shows or runway displays. Do you think they cast just any body as the modeling talent in the background? Nope, these are almost always real, working models who already have the attitude, looks, and skills necessary to look believable. These roles rarely have lines, but there's a good chance the camera will follow specific models to establish the scene.
4. Acting:
A huge part of being a star actor is cultivating an image and carrying yourself like a celebrity. Many models have found the transition from modeling to acting to be natural. And becoming a better actor can improve your modeling work as well. For instance, Gisele Bundchen appeared a supporting character in Taxi, and Rebecca Romijn stole scenes in the X-Men movies with her sculpted blue body and top-notch acting.
5. Body-Doubling:
Body part models and models in general frequently get work as body-doubles in feature films. Whenever you see a close-up of a specific body part or part of a celebrity's body without their face, the odds are a more in-shape model was chosen to replace their body. Nude or love scenes with high-profile actors and actresses commonly use models to create idealistic body images.
6. Motion-Capturing:
More and more movies are relying on extensive motion-capturing to fill in realistic motions and bodies in computer animation. Robert Zemeckis' Beowulf, for instance, looks real but is in fact 100% digital. Cartoon movies like Monster House and Polar Express use the same techniques. When recording movements and body shapes casting directors often seek out models who have the right look and smooth, articulate movements. This motion capturing can be for background characters or to improve the recorded movements of the film's stars.
7. Appearing as Yourself:
If you manage to make a name for yourself as a model, you might be able to appear in a movie as yourself! Famous models show up in movies in cameos all the time, usually for comedic effect or to fluster the protagonist with their amazing looks and star personality.
Those are just some of the ways you can use your talent as a model to get a part on the silver screen.
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