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Managing extras

The Extras category in the breakdown is where you track background talent: what each scene needs, how many, and who is booked for each spot. Each extras element has a roster, and the people on it land in your Address Book and on the call sheet.

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Where to find extras

In the project nav, click Breakdown, then Elements. Under Extras, click Open hub. The list shows each extras element, a link to its board, a link to its scene in the script, and how many scenes it appears in. The Extras list for Harbor Lights, with DOCKHANDS and FISHERMEN, each in one scene

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Adding extras to a scene

Tag extras straight from the script, the same way as any other breakdown element.
  1. Open Breakdown and click the arrow in a scene’s Breakdown column.
  2. In the script, select the words that describe the extras, like FERRY PASSENGERS.
  3. In the panel on the right, set the number you need in the box next to the name.
  4. Under Select Category, click Extras.
  5. Click Add to breakdown.
Selecting FERRY PASSENGERS in the lighthouse scene, choosing Extras with a count of 6, then FERRY PASSENGERS listed under the scene's extras You can also click Add Element without selecting any text and type the name yourself. See Tagging elements in a script breakdown for more on tagging.

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Filling the roster

Each extras element has a board with a Roster at the top: one slot for each extra you need. The count comes from the number you tagged. To change it, type a new number next to Edit count and click Edit count. The FISHERMEN board with a roster of three slots, Hank Dorsey in the first and two open slots To fill a slot:
  1. Open the extras element’s board from the Extras list.
  2. Click Assign extra… on an open slot.
  3. Pick someone from your Address Book, or click Enter manually.
  4. If you entered them manually, fill in a short description (like “Fisherman coiling rope”), their name, email, and phone, then click Save.
Clicking Assign extra on slot 2, the Assign from address book picker, then Luis Ortega on the roster with 2/3 filled Each slot is an Extra card on the board, below the roster. Click a card to edit its description, contact details, or notes. To clear a slot, click the x on its row.

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Extras and the Address Book

When a slot has a name, email, or phone, that person is added to the project’s Address Book under Extras, so you don’t enter them twice. Later changes on the Extra card update their Address Book record too. Edits made in the Address Book don’t flow back to the card, so change an extra’s details on their card. Empty slots don’t create contacts. To see everyone, open Address Book from the Production menu and click Extras. See Address Book for more. The Address Book's Extras tab listing Hank Dorsey and Luis Ortega

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Extras on call sheets

Extras in the scenes you schedule for a day appear in the call sheet’s Background Talent section. Each row shows the count and description, plus Arrival, Call, On Set, Report To, and Notes columns you fill in for the day, the scenes they’re in, and their emails. The call sheet's Background Talent section with 3 FISHERMEN and 2 DOCKHANDS, their arrival at the basecamp, and their scenes Extras with an email address can be included when you send the call sheet. For principal cast and their call times, see Managing cast. More: Tagging elements in a script breakdown, Managing cast, Address Book, Boards and cards.