Jessica Shamoon estimated that she had walked, strolled, and sauntered the same 20 feet of sidewalk on Broadway in downtown Turlock about 30 times by 11:30 a.m. Wednesday. And she was thrilled at the prospect of doing it another 30 times or more if needed.
Shamoon was one of the more than one thousand people who tried out for a spot as an extra in actor-director Corbin Bernsen’s movie project filming in Turlock, and she was one of the lucky dozen individuals who received a call to join the production on the first day of filming on Wednesday.
“When I heard about them filming here in Turlock, I knew I should go down and audition and when I got the call Tuesday asking me if I could come down to the set I was so excited,” Shamoon said. “How often to you get to be part of something like this so close to home?”
Filming for Bernsen’s project began filming in Turlock on Wednesday at Lisa’s Cookie Jar on Broadway. On Thursday the production company filmed at Sushi Cuisine on Monte Vista Avenue and Footer’s on Main Street.
Shamoon said her role as an extra mostly consisted of walking past Lisa’s Cookie Jar and “fake talking” but she didn’t mind, especially since it put her in close proximity to Bernsen and the movie’s leading lady, Lacey Chabert.
“Everybody has been so nice,” Shamoon said. “There are no Hollywood-attitudes.”
Chabert is the brunette beauty whose first brush with fame came with a leading role on “Party of Five,” which then led to a memorable turn in “Mean Girls.”
Chabert is playing the lead female role in Bernsen’s movie, which he wrote and is directing. The movie, currently titled “Christian Mingle” sees Chabert’s character turn to the faith-based dating website in an attempt to find Mr. Right. She meets a great guy, who happens to be the son of a pastor, and the two make a connection, but a happy ending may not be so easy to reach. Chabert’s character has overstated her faith and commitment to Christianity and the fact that the foundation of their relationship is built on a lie weighs heavily on her.
Chabert, 31, started her acting career with a role in the TV movie “A Little Piece of Heaven” with Kirk Cameron. She went on to land a role on “All My Children” and followed it with several television and movie roles, as well as multiple voiceover projects. In 1994, at the age of 12, Chabert was cast as Claudia Salinger in the family drama “Party of Five.”
Chabert got to show her comedy skills when she was cast as Gretchen Wieners in the hit movie “Mean Girls.” More recently, Chabert has voiced the character of Meg on the hit animation show “Family Guy.”
Cast as the lead male in the movie is Jonathan Patrick Moore, who most recently starred in the CW drama “L.A. Complex” as Connor Lake. Moore’s other acting credits included a part on “NCIS” and a role in the ABC Family television movie “The Mistle-Tones.” He also has an uncredited role in Oliver Stone’s film “Savages.”
Bernsen fell for Turlock’s charm after getting city tour from the Turlock Film Commission and found it to be an ideal locale to replicate the artsy neighborhood the main character resides in.
Filming in Turlock is expected to last through Dec. 16. Additional extras will be called in as filming progresses.
