One man worked as an extra on the Steve Jobs movie starring Ashton Kutcher and he wrote a piece about it on Gizmodo. Not usually your first stop for entertainment and gossip, but it is a really good article, and unlike me the guy can actually write well. When you think of Extras you might think of the Ricky Gervais show and that is not really it. Generally Kate Winslet does not stop by and chat with you about phone sex.
"It turns out that "background casting," as it's called, is a business of—to borrow a fishing term—casting a wide net. The Craigslist ads searching for Jobs extras in the same rudimentary manner one might look for a studio apartment are already the stuff of Gizmodo mockery, particularly because they make it seem like anybody with an internet connection and an Ashton obsession could walk onto the film's set. But it turns out that responding to a Craigslist cattle call is only the first obstacle to getting a part as human scenery on Jobs. The second obstacle is The Woman in Shorts."
People who do background work are really really patient and I think most of the time really high. I don't think there is any way to get through it or stay calm through everything. Anyway, if you want to read the rest of it you can click here. (Thanks libby)
Source:
http://www.crazydaysandnights.net/2012/08/want-to-be-movie-extra.html