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Local Louisiana gas station
pumps up the volume with LSU student Darrell Kropog,
Jr. and Britney Spears.
Between Classes with Britney
by Rochelle DelGaizo
Billera
May 2001
The CollegeBound Network NewsClick --
Darrell Kropog Jr., a Louisiana State University
student, may have something to sing about these
days. After all, he did score a part in a movie
starring pop diva Britney Spears.
Britney's
soon-to-be-released big screen debut, What
Are Friends For, was filmed in Darrell's hometown
of Hammond, LA, which -- through the magic of
movies -- was turned into a fictional rural Georgia
town. When one of the film's scenes called for
a young man working under a car lift in a gas
station while Brit' walks by, guess who answered?!
In
movie land, the station belongs to Britney's dad,
but in real life, it's Darrell's dad, Darrell
Sr., who owns it. That's how this LSU freshman
found out about the available part, a
tantalizing temptation he didn't
have to think too long about.
"Sure,
why not?!" That was Farrell Jr.'s answer, of course,
when asked to be in the film. It was like taking
Film 101 for free (not to mention that he'd get
to meet Ms. Spears)!
In
the process, Hollywood's
newest 'extra' found
that movie-making was actually a lot more involved
than he originally perceived. "I got there at
seven in the morning, but we didn't start shooting
the scene until about 2 p.m." And, although
his actual appearance will only last about 10
or 15 seconds, Darrell says set-up time was about
45 minutes, with half an hour of shooting time
and two or three takes to get it 'just right.'
"It
really changes your insight as to how a movie
is made," says a still-stunned Darrell. "Every
little thing takes a really long time... five
seconds [on film] could take five hours," he explains.
"It's really amazing!"
Darrell's
brush with brilliance didn't come without reward.
He was paid a cool $100 for his gig! Plus, his
neighborhood buddies, as well as his friends on
campus, now ask for his autograph!
"They're
just messin' with me," says a blushing Darrell,
who admits the most exciting part of the entire
ordeal is the fact that the directors promised
that his scene wouldn't wind up on the cutting-room
floor during editing!
If
ever given another opportunity to appear as an
extra in a film, Darrell assures he'd do it in
an instant. "It was fun and interesting!"
Not
to mention that his slice of stardom was publicized
by Hammond's local newspaper, as well as a London
BBC radio program called Up All Night. Both
media sources interviewed him, with the local
paper featuring an article about his film fun,
and the radio show broadcasting a live 'shout-out'
about Darrell's dynamite day!
Although
the brief notoriety was fun, the speech communications
major, who's considering law school, says he's
not trading his laptop for Hollywood sunglasses
just yet.
"I
don't think I'm a very good actor," he admits.
"But, I got to miss a day of school and be in
a movie. That's not something you get to do everyday!"
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