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The Great Fall Tribune
Movie 'extra' special for kids
They're gorgeous kids. And I've never met so many well-behaved children.
By KATIE OYAN
KATIE OYAN Tribune Staff Writer
A part in "Northfork" was just what the doctor ordered for one 9-year-old from Simms.
Matthew Stark was one of about a dozen local children cast as orphans and students in the independent movie that finished filming in Great Falls this week.
A third-grader at Fort Shaw Elementary, Matthew was diagnosed with cancer in September 1999 and went into remission in October 2000.
Doctors were able to remove the tumor behind his right eye, but Matthew still has trouble focusing. "His brain read that there was an abnormality and shut it off," said his mom, Sherilyn Stark.
Because of that, catching fly balls and shooting baskets can be challenging.
"We haven't found anything that he can really participate in because of the vision problem," Sherilyn Stark said. "Every time we tried to get him into something, it's like 'This isn't quite right.'"
Since Matthew used his natural acting skills to withstand chemotherapy and fight cancer, his parents thought "Northfork" might be right up his alley.
"You have to be an actor to get through it," Sherilyn Stark said. "It's a 'fake it so you make it' kind of thing."
She added that she hopes the "Northfork" experience met Matthew's expectations. "It might just be a one-shot, two-hour thing, and it might get cut from the movie," she said. "I'm trying not to build his expectations too high."
Matthew and the other young "Northfork" extras spent much of Monday at the former C.M. Russell Elementary School on the city's far west side, filming and waiting to film a show-and-tell scene with 8-year-old Duel Farnes of Ennis, who was cast in a lead role.
Other area extras were Ashley Judd, 9, of Stockett, and James Pope, 9, of Belt. Great Falls extras were Brenton Gabriel, 7; Jack Boes, 9; Emily Boes, 8; Dezeray Brasda, 9; Bowan Peters, 9; Jacob Oberholtzer, 8; Joey Markin, 9; Kelly Preston, 11; Whitney Chevalier, 8; and 8-year-old twins Spencer and Emily McAvoy.
Bozeman casting agent Tina Buckingham said the group was picked from more than 150 kids from the Great Falls and Bozeman areas.
Monday's extras were a hit, said Mark Polish, who wrote the "Northfork" screenplay with his brother Michael.
"Every one was unique and special and had unique faces," Polish said. "They're gorgeous kids. And I've never met so many well-behaved children."
"Northfork," set in 1955, centers on an orphan named Irwin, played by Farnes, and a group of residents forced to move their homes to make way for a new dam.
Monday's extras wore neutral-colored 1940s and '50s vintage outfits gleaned from thrift shops and rental houses all over the country.
"It's all period-genuine, from the shoes to the shirts," costume designer Danny Glicker said.
The kids were "exceptionally polite and well-behaved" during costuming, Glicker said.
"I love the kids," he said. "I think they look great."
André Blaise styled their hair. Most of the kids simply got some gelling and combing, but Spencer McAvoy got the razor.
"He wasn't expecting to have his head shaved," said his mom, Amber McAvoy, adding that she didn't mind the new look. "It'll grow back," she said.
Spencer's sister, Emily, also was an actor for a day Monday. Amber McAvoy got the tip at a beauty salon that "Northfork" needed young extras and thought it would be something her twins would enjoy.
"It's exciting," she said. "It's something none of us has ever gotten to do."
Joey Markin, a third-grader at Our Lady of Lourdes, said the best part of being an extra was the free snacks. The worst part was the wool pants.
"I got my hair done, and I got these weird clothes that are hot," he said. "And I was nervous at first, because one person got his hair shaved."
His mom, Stephanie Markin, said she thought performing in "Northfork" would be a memorable experience for Joey.
"I grew up in L.A. where it happens a lot," Markin said. "But not everyone in Great Falls gets to do this. It's something we'll definitely put in the scrapbook."
Emily Boes planned to use the $50 she earned as an extra Monday to fix a couple of her parents' garage-door windows she broke with a tennis ball.
Her brother, Jack, said some of his earnings would go toward new Game Boy games. "And I'm going to put the leftovers in my bank," he said.
Bowan Peters likes acting but wants to be a scientist when he grows up. Even so, he skipped a field trip to Benton Lake Monday for his big-screen debut.
His parents, Colleen and Michael Peters, went to the set with him. Colleen said she learned about the part from a newspaper ad.
"He's kind of a ham at home," she said. "I asked him if he'd like to do it, and he said sure."
Lynae Oberholtzer also left the decision to her son Jacob. "I just mentioned it, and he said he wanted to do it. He said, 'Mom, call.'"
Belt resident Amy Pope also accompanied her son, James, to the set.
"I knew he'd enjoy it and wouldn't be shy about it," she said. "It's fun being here and seeing how all this works. I wish I was James when I was a kid."
James has performed in a few plays, but when he grows up he'd rather be an artist or an architect than an actor.
Dezeray Brasda of Great Falls spent her down time Monday helping Farnes with his math homework.
The third-grader from Mountain View Elementary School said acting in "Northfork" was fun, but she wasn't crazy about her costume.
"I'm not really a dress person," Dezeray said. "I'll wear them if I have to, but I'm more of a pants person."
Her mother, Ida Brasda, was Daryl Hannah's stand-in.
Michelle Judd's daughter was destined to be an extra. She already has a movie star name.
When little Ashley Judd becomes famous, they'll have to use her middle name to distinguish her from the other Ashley Judd, of "Double Jeopardy" and "Eye of the Beholder" fame, Ashley's mom, Michelle Judd, said. "We've been teasing her that she's the movie star now."
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Northfork (2003) (Read 8,649 times)
