My Experience As A MediaCorp Extra

You called for more personal posts, so here it is. I don't lead a very happening life, but this is one of the very rare, exciting things that occurred last month - my one-time-off job as a Mediacorp extra. I was roped in by a friend who was looking for girls to be 'models' for a variety show, also known as the human mannequins for makeup. I would probably not agree to this normally - being on national TV meant risking embarrassment (and having to retreat into the mountains until everyone forgets about it). But then again, I thought to myself - YOLO! I'm quite an inspirational quotes collector, so at that moment, a particular quote came to me: You will only regret the chances you didn't take. So off I went.

The first thing they did was to ship us into the makeup room, where rows of celebrities will sit when they do their makeup. I was quite surprised to see that the extras are sent into the same room as them. Contrary to the urban legends that the acting industry is full of power play, everyone appears to be treated quite equally, at least on the surface! There are so many celebrities walking around the makeup room, but they all seemed very occupied so I didn't ask for a picture. There was some intense internal fangirling and poker face going on. The makeup artists are very efficient in their work and paint faces in a clockwork motion, and oh boy, I never looked so good. Their concealer is excellent and made my face so flawless... that is possibly due to the need to counteract the improving HD technology on screens.

We had an indoor and outdoor shoot for a day each. On both days, we had to wait for quite a long time. This is not a complaint, it's just an observation as I was there with an open mind to experience the whole thing in its most original format. I guess it's part and parcel of acting/filming careers and this is also the number one reason why I probably wouldn't want to become an actress (if I were given a choice, that is). Kudos to the cameramen, directors and backstage crew who have to work continuously while the actors/extras are resting and waiting. They don't ever stop. Now I understand why the celebrities always spend a long time thanking people whose name we can't recognize during Star Awards... they are the unsung heroes who are constantly putting in effort but never get recognized.

When it was time to be in front of the cameras, it's quite nerve-wrecking, exciting and funny at the same time. For the indoor shoot, you'll get two huge televisions to see who is being captured by the cameramen. I was really self-conscious because the camera zoomed into my face, but not much instructions were given on what to do, where to look or how to react. The whole process was very impromptu and I have no idea how it will turn out to be. My face looked pretty round and bewildered simultaneously. I guess it's true about how televisions expand faces, eh? Another observation is that the faces of celebrities are often very small relative to the rest of their bodies, and that's why they always look so good. They are also very aware of how they appear on television - natural and confident. It's really a skill that needs to be learned and it's not easy at all.

Their working hours are also very long - in fact it is 24/7, given that they still needed to maintain a certain image wherever they go. We were in the indoor studio for almost five hours straight. Much of it was waiting time, but in any case they still had to maintain professionalism and stay in position glamorously, while I curled up in one of the theatre seats in the dark comfortably. It was super cold, so if you ever had to go to the Mediacorp theatres... bring a thick jacket! I managed to sneak a picture with Dawn Yeoh, one of the seven princesses of Caldecott Hill. She's so gentle, beautiful and so down-to-earth. It was a really fun experience and fulfilled my little dream of appearing on TV! If you're interested in seeing the variety show that I make a fleeting appearance in the first and second episode: Ladies Night - 10.30pm on Channel 8, every Monday from 8 December 2014. Please don't laugh.