She's Just Being Miley

The day began at 4 a.m. At first I thought to myself, why am I doing this again? But, I must have been excited because I think I only got about two hours of sleep. Altogether, there were 14 of us from SCAD that had signed up to be extras in "The Last Song." Courtney and I backed out at least three times, but in the end, our final decision was to go and hang out with Miley at Tybee. 

All the extras had to meet at a middle school at 5:30 a.m. Courtney struck up a conversation with a 56-year-old woman who claimed to have won a beauty contest in Georgia that offered her many positions as extras in films. Her name was Charlene. Because I do not want to spend this entire blog posting talking about Charlene, I will tell you this and then move forward. She followed us (all 14 in our group) around and would not leave! You know how some people just don't get the hint?! Well, she was one of them. 

We were transported via shuttle buses to the Tybee YMCA. I was asked to come prepared with two alternate outfits in case the wardrobe people didn't like my clothes. I passed the wardrobe check and hair check. But, then a lady told me to follow her because I had too much makeup on my face. Interestingly enough, I purposely wore less makeup than usual because I knew we were going to be at the beach all day long. My eyeshadow and eyeliner were both removed, leaving me looking younger than 16-year-old Miley. 

One more bus trip to the actual site of the set. I was under the impression that all the extras were going to be watching a beach volleyball tournament, but when we got there, the bleachers were already full. So... my friends and I got paid to lay out on the beach... Rough life, I know. Courtney and I couldn't believe it. We definitely did not regret making this decision! 

Well, there is only so much 'tanning' you can do before you get bored, so Courtney and I walked over to the volleyball area to see what was happening. We were told to stand in a specific area and cheer for the Red Team. Look for us on the silver screen in 2010. 

The PA's (Production Assistants) had informed us that we would see Miley today. However, we were warned that if we yelled her name or tried to ask for an autograph, we would be sent home. Around noon, I heard some of the extras making a fuss that Miley had arrived. Sure enough, she was there in a sage green dress and a messy bun. Honestly, I was more excited to see Greg Kinnear in his aviators. We watched them rehearse their lines. I observed Miley doing some annoying things. 

.... To Be Continued... 

(I am very tired from my 12-hour movie shoot)

Here I am two days later and I'm going to finish telling you about my movie debut. Sorry for making you wait. I just have so many fans now that I can hardly keep track of anything anymore! 

Back to Miley stalking... 

All of the extras had to remain uber quiet while Miley and Greg rehearsed and then, of course, while they were filming. My least favorite thing to watch was when Miley had to jump up and hug her sweaty lover, Liam, after his team "won" the volleyball tournament. Liam was probably the worst volleyball player I have ever seen. But, his team wins in the movie... I probably gave away some secret. Don't tell anyone I told you. I had to witness and re-witness Miley give Liam an awkward hug and kiss after Liam's victory. But the grossest part of all was when I saw Miley kiss Liam's chest (and I must say that the cameras were not rolling at that point). I was close enough to hear her call Liam, "Baby" and to hear her say, "I'm flashing everybody." Her short dress kept flying up when the breeze passed by. At one point, Miley was on her way back into her VIP tent and I had just stopped at the water station and I was no more than 10 feet away from her. I told Courtney and she was so jealous.  

After a much needed lunch break back at the YMCA, we were all bussed back to the beach to finish filming for the day. One person had said we'd be there for another five hours and the thought of that made me cringe. Thankfully, we were only back on set for another hour and a half before we were dismissed for the day. I must admit that I enjoyed the roles that the Production Assistant gave to Courtney, Nick, Brady, and me. In a nutshell, Nick and I were told to pass by Courtney and Brady repeatedly, acting as though we had just "bumped into our friends on the beach." And we were instructed to "walk with a purpose." For example, we glanced to see the volleyball game, but we acted like it was no big deal and just kept walking. By this time in the day (after 4pm), Miley was already gone. Finally, we got the 'OK' to start heading back to the buses. We did it! 

I left the set with some unforgettable memories:

1. A sandy body

2. A darker shade of skin

3. A Greg/Miley/Liam stalk session

4. A paycheck in the mail

5. A chance to be discovered on the big screen

6. A ton of laughs that made everything worth it! (Special thanks to Brady, Courtney, & Nick) 

Definitely an experience of a lifetime!