Extras needed for Dec. 18 'One Life to Live' shoot

Only a few years ago, Princeton students rubbed elbows with Russell Crowe during the filming of "A Beautiful Mind." A new generation of Princetonians has the opportunity to get some camera time, albeit on a smaller screen. The University and ABC are looking for extras for an episode of "One Life to Live" that will be shot at Holder Hall Dec. 18.

In the episode Princeton will double as Llanview University in the fictional town of Llanview, Penn., where the soap opera is set. The plot involves the investigation of a serial killer, known on the show as the "Music Box Killer," and will climax in the discovery of a body in the courtyard.

"One Life to Live" will only film the exterior of the Holder courtyard and will avoid shooting any identifying insignias or landmarks.

"The University prefers to remain anonymous, unless the project specifically involves Princeton," said Tom Quirk '00, conference coordinator in the Center of Visitors and Conference Services.

The episode will feature cast members Bree Williamson, who plays Jessica Buchanan, and Erika Slezak, who plays Victoria Lee Carpenter, said Lauri Hogan, publicist for "One Life to Live." Princeton students seeking their 15 minutes — or perhaps 30 seconds — of fame will be shot walking through the Holder courtyard.

Projects filmed on campus typically do not solicit Princeton students as extras, preferring to bring their own. ABC expressed some concern that the cast members who play Llanview University students, but are older in real life, may seem too old next to real college students, Quirk said.

Quirk said that student interest has been greater than expected. "I've gotten emails from 12 people in the last 24 hours," Quirk said, "I expected to hear mostly from juniors or seniors, but we've received interest from an even spread of people."

Extras will be paid $108 to $136 for each episode that they appear in. The range of pay depends on how many extras are featured in total. Filming will take place on only one day, but shots may be cut and used in future episodes.

Though "One Life to Live" has filmed other episodes at Princeton, most filming on campus is not commercial. Most often, proposals are for professor interviews for PBS or the History Channel, or for documentary segments for HBO or Bravo.

Still photography is also frequently shot on campus. Fitting with Princeton's image, Brooks Brothers' recent catalog was shot on campus and Esquire Magazine frequently comes to the university for photo shoots.

"A lot of activity followed 'A Beautiful Mind,' " Quirk said, "producers and people in the industry learned about Princeton from it."

The University has recently been approached about a new major studio picture loosely titled "The Translator." Though most proposals want to film at Princeton for Princeton's collegiate gothic, distinctly Ivy-League architecture, the film will be about a UN translator, and producers have specifically requested to film around Robertson Hall.

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Recent projects have included two documentaries by famous alumni. Dean Cain '88, best known for playing Superman on the television program "The Adventures of Lois and Clark," was a football player at Princeton and is currently working on a documentary about Ivy League football. The documentary has finished filming at Princeton but is still shooting at other Ivy League schools. It will eventually be distributed at various film festivals.

Another ongoing project is a documentary funded by Peter Lewis '55, who donated money for the genomics institute and the soon-to-be-built science library. Though the original scope of the project was to document the construction of Whitman College and the Frank Gehry-designed library, the documentary will now cover Princeton's architectural diversity and serve as an educational tool for architecture schools.