This thread is not a spoiler thread. What will you find here? You'll find discussion of what happens behind the scenes at FNL -- things we might hear about from actors at fan events, or might read about in media interviews. Some of our posters are occasional extras on FNL. They sometimes have backstage stories to tell about their experiences on the show, and information to share about the production, too. This is the place for that, too. Enjoy.

Thanks so much for this thread. I've been working as an extra since mid August, and I love it. I truly feel as though I'm part of something special. I've been asked if I'm going to do more extra-ing after FNL is done, and i've said no. I just want to be a part of this show and can't see myself doing anything else like this again.

The atmosphere on the set is very upbeat and very loving. Not like loving each other, just love for this show. i've met so many awesome people who are so proud of Austin and its part in making FNL. Sometimes I feel like I've been part of a foreign country for the past year. A country that doesn't speak FNL. When I'm with the other extras, and the cast and crew, I very much feel a sense of coming home. We all speak the same language. I'm booked for Wednesday and i can't wait.

The only glitch in this blue and gold paradise that I've found, is I keep getting lost. Just once I would like to find the set without having to call the casting office for directions. the big irony here is that my user name for everything is Amazing grace. the verse in that hymn goes, "I once was lost , but now am found." I seem to have gotten the lost part down like a pro, it's the found part i have a problem with.

My scene films in Pflugerville. Anyone have any idea where the actual filming will be, so i can get a handle on where I'm going??
I'm looking forward to meeting other extras on this thread!!

I was an extra in the first four episodes, but then school/work/the football season took over and now I have no time. I'm looking forward to our bye weeks or the end of the season just so I can have a free day or two to go back to the set -- and that's saying a lot considering how much I love college football.

I found working on the show to be pretty amazing; just being on the set with all that energy was incredible. Even if my feet hurt from standing, if I was tired of the heat and even if I don't show up in any of the scenes I filmed, I consider it a worthwhile experience. The crew is incredibly nice as are the actors. And I enjoyed being around a lot of other people who love the show, since I find very few people in real life who appreciate it.

I think the extras who work as fans at the games have one of the hardest extra jobs. I was pretty awed by their ability to stand up for 3-4 hours, yell and wave pompoms and signs, stop for lunch, and then turn around and do it again for another few hours. Working as "press" for the same amount of time is nothing compared to the enthusiasm the fans must have.

No clue where the Pflugerville scene will be filmed, amazing grace03 -- I might be able to give you directions once they put up the notice tomorrow night.

They just posted the location, Calvary chapel in P'ville on pecan St. I mapq'ed directions and it looks like it's a pretty straight shot.
Only, they said NO SHORTS!!! That's all I have is shorts! How can they not allow SHORTS???!? Oh well. I'll deal with that issue in the morning.

Don't forget -- NO FLIP-FLOPS! You don't want to get sent home!

Although I wonder about the shorts. I understand the no flip-flops -- when I was rushed called for a scene in this season's premiere, I showed up in flip-flops. And then got stuck in the mud. No good. But shorts? Hmm.

I say you use this as an excuse to buy more clothes -- I admit I've done that once or twice (though I didn't have any blue or yellow, which was an issue). Maybe you'll wear those non-shorts again the two days of the year it gets below 70 degrees.

I went out last pay day and bought a blue polo, a gold polo and a gold T-shirt. Plus I have the blue FNL shirt we were given after a church scene. I think I'll do capris and my panther blue crocs tomorrow.

Well, today was pantheriffic!!! First things first, I didn't get lost!! In fact, my friend who is also an extra and knows her way around Austin better than i do, got lost and was calling on ME for help. Imagine that!!

It was a lot of hurry up and wait. I met quite a few people. Now that this is a regular(sort of) gig for me, people are getting used to me being around and we're all getting to know each other. We went to the gym and they sat us in the bleachers. Then a few of us were told to mingle at the silent auction. I saw Kyle and went up to him and thanked him for signing Benji's guestbook. As usual, he was very gracious. When I asked if he knew that Benji was mine, he smiled and said he does now. Later on, I made the incredibly dorky observation that if he wore BDU's, he'd be a tree. I don't know what possessed me to say that, but there it was. He just laughed. I also met Connie and Zach, who is a croc wearer just like me!! Only his were yellow. I talked briefly to Buddy garrity and to the mayor and also mama smash.
The rally itself was pretty wild. The football players did a dance which had us seeing a side to the players that we never saw before. Everybody was dressed in blue and gold. The rally itself took place at Plfugerville High school, home of the real panthers with the real school colors of blue and gold. It was so much fun. I can't wait to do it again. I thank God every day for allowing me to be a part of something so special!!
I'll post pics tomorrow. I'm wiped like a butt.

amazing grace03, I'm curious, do they do a lot a shooting at the P-ville highschool and around Pflugerville? I live in North Austin (Pflugerville High alum ironically) and would love to be an extra if I thought I could get scenes near home. How exactly does one get hired?

Actually most scenes are shot in South Austin.
The football stadium is right across from the airport.
They used Pflugerville's gym for obvious reasons and originally they copied Pflugerville's uniforms with the idea that they could use a lot of actual game footage in season one.
Turned out they used very little actual game footage except for a couple of episodes and now they shoot all of their own football scenes when needed.
The uniforms are even different this season than last because the do not have to match anything.

If you want to sign up as an extra go to www.myspace.com_fnlextras.com

The directions are there.

ah, that's what I had originally thought actually(filming was in s. austin or del valle). Still seems like it would be fun to do. Thanx for the info AusTexNative

I had such a good time filming Thursday night into the wee hours of Friday morning.

My cold, black heart grew 3 times its size when I saw Tim Riggins feeding a stray cat ice cream out behind the shooting location. I stood there for about 10 minutes debating before I actually walked up to him and spoke to him, which I normally wouldn't have the nerve to do. So I finally asked myself "WWRD", which is kinda meta, but I screwed up my courage and went up to him and said "Excuse me sir" or something really lame like that, "do you know anything about this cat" and he was really nice, and said he didn't know but she was very friendly. I checked her out and it seems she had recently had kittens. So I went to my car and got out a 20 pound bag of cat food and hauled it back to the back of the building. Lyla says "where did you get that" like I had just pulled a rabbit out of a hat. I told her I did cat rescue (and I always have a 20 lb bag of cat food, canned cat food, styrofoam bowls, water, extra carriers, a trap, etc), and she said "awww." They then told me there was a declawed cat around too (I never did see that one). I said declawed cats shouldn't be outside, and they said they knew. I went and got my card and gave it to Lyla and told her if they were at any other shoots and saw cats to call me and I would see if I could help them.

We will be working with the restaurant to save these cats, especially since they are tame.

A raccoon got into the building, which was interesting. Someone had to be called to get him out.

Saracen sat one booth away from us. He says he is a senior now.

The food was really good too - the catered food - not the food that had been sitting out for hours we had to pretend to eat.

Hmmm... didn't Omar run a big S1 photo expose proving that all the cast were dog lovers?

Sounds like a good night... Bop over to the spoiler thread and give us some scoop!

You can be a cat lover as well as a dog lover:). Riggins was concerned enough about the cat to go get her 2 bowls of ice cream off the catering spread. As well as petted her. I would expect if they didn't like cats at all they would have just ignored them.

I'll go over there and tell you what I know, which is little. I had a job until this past Monday *sigh*, so this is the first time I've been booked.

As much as I'm fawning over Taylor Kitsch looking out for the kitty cat (a kind heart to go with those cut abs? Hello!)... aren't cat's naturally lactose intolerant?

I just read Taylor Kitsch...kitty cat and ice-cream and promptly fainted.

Well, they are mammals, so they aren't by nature lactose intolerant. Cow's milk is not the best thing for them and does not contain enough calories and fat for kittens. Mine lick up the ice cream bowl when I'm finished and have not suffered any ill effects, and the cat was very thin, and it was about the best thing around to feed the cat (of course they did not know I had a 20 lb bag of cat food in my car).



I *felt* like fainting. I stood there about 10 minutes and finally said ok self you have to try to help this cat. So then I go up to him and say something horribly lame like "Excuse me sir, (like I don't know who he is)" Ack, it was embarrassing.

So, we went back to the location tonight and rescued the kitty with the permission of the property owner. We will have her checked by our vet and advertise for her owner (I don't think she has an owner, but ethics demand it). If we are unable to locate an owner she will be up for adoption. Her name is "Taylor" and she's a brown tabby. She was starving when we got her to our volunteer's house and wolfed down 2 cans of cat food right off the bat. She knows how to use a litter box and is a purring machine. I will be posting pictures when I get them.

Good on ya for saving the cat, i find it horrible to see animals homeless and it has casued more than a few rows with the boyfriend when he comes home only to find another cat that I am fostering till he gets a good home.

$1,025 worth of pizza was ordered tonight to feed us. I would have loved to be a fly on the wall when Mr Gatti's took that order...you want WHAT? Heh.

They fed us Pizza hut on Friday Night.

Georgetown alumni magazine puff piece on a couple of the football doubles.

Wow! Being at the *season* finale was amazing. I got to talk to so many people - Grandma, Landry, Riggins, Smash (don't know why he was there as I am pretty sure he wasn't in the finale, I think he was just visiting, I walked up to him and shook his hand and just said "Hi, do you know how many times you've made me cry?" (I'm such a very huge dork, I know).

I talked to everyone before we started shooting. Boredom will do that to you! I mean I talked to the guys who do stuff like set up the signs that say "Congratulations Mindy and Billy" - a girl I was hanging out with made a $10 bet that "Congratulations" is spelled with a "d." Of course it isn't, she paid up, but they kept us supplied with water the rest of the afternoon. Later we saw (on the side they weren't shooting from" that the other side of the sign said "Congradulations Mindy and Billy ".) We all cracked up. I never get to talk to those people usually, they do such a lot of work behind the scenes and get no glory. Like the guy who brings our water, I am sorry I didn't ever get to talk to him (I am sure he does other things also, I'm sure his title is not "Get the extras water guy". Anyway we were talking about how much I loved the show and they said, you know, the fans are the reason the show is still around. We talked about the footballs that were sent and etc. Later I noticed they had repainted the front of the Elks Lodge (which apparently is where Disney princesses have their receptions in Dillon, TX) to say "Dillon Lodge" and it occurred to me that they'd have to come back after it was over, when we were all gone, to repaint it yet again to say "Elks Lodge." So here's to all the people who do all the little things to make the show so great.

The wedding reception was the epitome of tacky - the props people did a GREAT job. Not sure how much of it will actually be seen. My favorite was the elk head with the 4 wedding bells hanging off his antlers. He was right behind the wedding party so perhaps he will actually be seen.

There were these little wedding chariots on the tables - we were having races with them at my table. I saw Landry outside when we were waiting for the bride and groom to leave the church and he had one of them in his hand. I asked if they were going to let him keep it. He said "probably, it is in a scene." So then he started talking about how much work had gone into it (which actually came up in a scene with Tyra later). He had been playing with his chariot too, heh.

Tim Riggins is about the only man I have ever seen who looks good in a white suit. He walked over to me and asked how I was doing *faint thud squee!*. I told him about the cat we rescued and told him I would send pics (of the cat) to his agent or publicist or whoever. He was really nice about it.

I was talking to Grandma before the shoot and she admired my earrings, made by the fabulous Persephone (http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=5412607) I told her I had a shirt with her grandson's name on it. She told me to find her at the reception.
They filmed this very intense scene with Matt and Grandma and I absolutely had to go across the room and tell her she made me cry during *filming* - I can't imagine what this will do to me when the show airs. So, for anyone who ever wanted to tell these people they made you cry, I did it for you:P

Friday I got to see an extra who had never gotten to be an extra before and he LOVES the show. It was so much fun for him! They gave him a t-shirt because they said he was yelling so loud he was scaring the guys down on the field:)

I am starting an unofficial campaign called "Watch the Show." The girl who was standing behind me and caught a t-shirt, she had never watched the show before, good, you caught a t-shirt, watch the show. The bus driver who drove us? Watch the show. Watch the show, see yourself on tv, watch the show because if you don't you won't be working (as an extra) next season, watch the show because there are hot guys on it, watch the show because there are hot girls on it. Just watch.the.damn.show. I don't care why, just watch it.

Sounds like a good time!


You know, I think it actually is. I'm fascinated by that guy. The only time I've ever seen him do anything else was one time at the ALC, they were using the library as a holding area for the extras and some of the high schoolers made a mess and the librarian was annoyed and the principal came and gave the production people a stern talking to. So that guy came and straightened the chairs and picked up some paper.

But otherwise, it's just water. And it's the same guy from last season! You'd think that was sort of an unpaid intern kind of position, but I think it is this guy's career. He has that custom-made get the extras water belt. I think there is a Teamster-affiliated Get the Extras Water Union, and every production has to have a member on set at all times, and there's only like five of these guys in Texas and you know extras here need lots of water, so he works like 350 days a year (more than anyone else in the Texas film industry) and is pulling down like $300K.

Believe me, realbirdlady, he's one of my favorite people, so I should really ask his name..but I'm horrible with names..I meant to call Lou Anne Lou Anne, but I kept calling her Lorraine, I guess she didn't mind because she didn't correct me....

You know you have to go to the Spoiler thread and tell us all about this scene right?? :)

This isn't a behind-the-scenes account, but it is a real-life cast sighting. I think it's appropriate to relate it here.

Britton and Kitsch have taken up the cause of educating children in Africa by serving as celebrity voices for the African Children's Choir. The Choir gave a concert last Sunday in Austin at The Parish, and Britton and Kitsch hosted. Several Austin singer-songwriters and bands also performed. Connie Britton and Taylor Kitsch are clearly devoted to the kids.

I was absolutely thrilled to be sharing a room with them (and Teegarden, Leland, Chandler, and Stacey Oristano (Mindy Collette)). Leland served as the auctioneer for FNL DVDs and posters, as well as other giveaways. Kyle Chandler must have been hiding in the back of the room, because I didn't see him until I was on my way out at the end of the evening.

I couldn't figure out why people weren't flocking to the cast members. I know why I wasn't: a) I was too shy and b) I thought that gushing to them about their show would be disrespectful to the Choir, the reason they were there. But then I sort of felt bad - I wanted them to know how beloved they were, and I didn't even take the time to tell them. And no one else did, either. I hope they know. I couldn't believe I was the only starstruck person there. I didn't show it, but I thought for sure that others would. Maybe others didn't care. I hope that wasn't the case.

That's really great of Taylor & Connie, and it's good seeing the other cast members with them there. Thanks for sharing your encounter. There haven't been any reviews or pictures from the event. It would have been nice to have a couple of pictures, especially with many cast members going and for this great cause.

You know, I took pictures, but my camera's low-end, and they didn't come out well at all. Mostly I illuminated the people in front of me; Connie and Taylor were dark and in the background. I really wish I had something worthy of sharing! I also really wish I hadn't been so shy. I just didn't know what to do.

Silly question, but does anyone know if the cat was ever adopted?

And damn, I wish there was photograph evidence of the cat and Taylor. I'd pay a lot of money to some charity for a print (if it existed, or course).

I agree,I'd donate as well.

I was at The African Childrens Choir too! It was great to see so many cast members support eachother. I saw Stacey Oristano (Mindy Collette) and Derek Phillips (Billy Riggins) cracking eachother up by the bar. And then Taylor, Connie, Stacey and Derek leaving together. The Choir was BEAUTIFUL!!!

I've also seen Stacey and Adrianne Palicki out around Austin a couple of times too. They are always making eachother laugh like crazy. It's so cute to see that all these guys really like eachother off the set. Seems like they would be mad fun to hang with!

She isn't adopted yet. Neither are the kittens. Well, I am keeping Zach:P

I'm sorry, I didn't think to take a picture, and I didn't have my camera.

I did get to tell him about the cat and her kittens at the season finale and I told him I'd send pictures (of the cat) to his publicist or manager or whoever those famous folk have.

The kittens are named Minka, Aimee and Zach.

I missed Derek Phillips! Wah! I made eye contact with Aimee Teegarden, but didn't smile or anything because I didn't want her to think I was trying to be a kiss-ass. I wonder if it's okay to worry about these things.

I agree that it's great the cast likes each other outside work. I hope they like hanging out in Austin. I mean, I know it isn't LA, but as far as places to have to work go, one could do a lot worse.

For sure. From the little I've seen of both cities, I'd probably prefer Austin.