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Extras sought for CBS.com series filming at MSU
By AMANDA RICKER Chronicle Staff Writer
NuMedia Studios is casting extras today and Friday for a CBS.com Web series to be filmed at Montana State University next week.
In particular, the producers are looking for college-age men who can play basketball, a goofy teenage boy with a mouth full of braces and a 20-something woman with great hair.
The series, called “Heckle-U,” follows an underachieving slacker named Chance (played by actor Owen Benjamin from the MTV show “Punk’d”) who excels at heckling during college basketball games.
In the heckling department, Chance has help from his best friend Darrel (played by actor Kirk Fox from the movie “Forgetting Sarah Marshall”) and his bartender uncle Lou (played by actor Tom Arnold from the movie “True Lies”).
“Heckle-U” will consist of 10 short Webisodes, which are scheduled to begin airing online in February and continue through this year’s March Madness National Collegiate Athletic Association basketball tournament.
Crews plan to film “Heckle-U” during MSU men’s basketball games on Jan. 22 and Jan. 24 in the Brick Breeden Fieldhouse, said Brian Skuletich, NuMedia’s development director and a 2003 MSU graduate.
NuMedia Studios chose MSU for the series’ backdrop because several of the crew members are MSU alumni, including Colin Arndt and Royce Gorsuch, who graduated in 2007, Skuletich said.
“Our company is basically an MSU fan club,” Skuletich said.
NuMedia had hoped to make the hecklers in the series diehard MSU fans. But due to NCAA rules against heckling, the Bobcat image won’t appear in lights.
People may recognize MSU as the backdrop for the series, but Skuletich said the heckling jokes aren’t mean. He described them as having a “smart-style, like in the movie ‘Fletch.’”
During the Jan. 22 game, the crew will film during halftime. The crew plans to roll out a fake logo over the court to cover up the MSU Bobcat image and then have extras go out and play eight minutes of basketball, Skuletich said.
The crew may use blue and white as the fictional team’s colors rather than MSU’s blue and gold, Skuletich said.
Drew Ingraham, MSU’s assistant athletic director of marketing, said the university is pleased to host the crew. MSU film students are getting a chance to help.
Auditions for speaking and non-speaking roles are from 7 to 8 p.m. today, Thursday, Jan. 15, at the Hilton Garden Inn; and from 5 to 6 p.m. Friday, Jan. 16, at the Bozeman Public Library.
Speaking roles the crew hopes to fill include:
* male n age 40 to 60, comb-over type, sweater vest, excitable;
* male n villainous fan, late 40s or 50s, sly, straight-backed, concerned;
* male n announcer in his 50s;
* male n random heckler, college student;
* male n teen student with braces, nerdy, goofy;
* male n muscled, large guy;
* male n 10-year-old boy, innocent but spunky;
* male n dad of 10-year-old boy, ex-jock, sports-coach type;
* female n “hot” German girl, college age, blonde, fair skin, nice smile;
* female - “Head & Shoulders” type, 21-26 years old, beautiful, great hair, “think covergirl”;
* female n mom, attractive, mid-40s, flirtatious.
Non-speaking roles being cast include basketball players, coaches, fans, cheerleaders, attractive females, students and security guards.
Extras are also needed as fans to fill the Brick Breeden Fieldhouse stands during the Jan. 24 game. Anyone who is interested should send an e-mail with contact information to heckleucasting@gmail.com.
Questions or resumes also may be e-mailed to casting director Tina Buckingham at filmmt@aol.com.
Amanda Ricker can be reached at aricker@dailychronicle.com or 582-2628.
