Choose
Histiorical Film Services
for first-class supporting artistes, specialist extras, re-enactors and
wardrobe. We act as an experienced interface between clients and performers, so
you only get the best service and won't have to waste time explaining the specialist needs of the filming
world.
Why waste time training up SAs or walk-ons from scratch and filming something in several takes when you could achieve success more efficiently and quickly with our experienced and reliable specialist extras and re-enactors? Most significantly, the potential for saving you time, effort and money is enormous. You can trust us to source, organise and co-ordinate the best re-enactors or specialists for your film project utilising our unrivalled knowledge of quality historical groups and database of hundreds of individual re-enactors, period musicians & other historical performers.
Not only can our performers usually offer an amazing depth of knowledge of their chosen eras, they can often come "ready for action", complete with uniform/clothing, weaponry/other kit, or quickly adapt to your wardrobe requirements if wished. Our performers are thoroughly professional and never "precious". They are disciplined, safely trained within an existing organisational structure, quick to learn and usually get things right first time. The advantages become immediately obvious on set. As well as TV productions, a number of major feature films have also featured experienced specialist extras in battle scenes and for crucial background ambience.
With our extensive contacts, we can almost certainly arrange completely accurate period clothing, armour, weaponry and other kit, matching or saving on the cost of often inaccurate costume hired from elsewhere. So why take the risk of getting it wrong when for the same cost or less, you can get it absolutely right? Choose Historical Film Services with confidence.
Click the links for credits or production photographs
Why use our specialist extras?
You could of course simply ring up re-enactment groups "blind" and hire them, but if you do they might not be used to filming and what it entails, you won't have any guarantee of quality, a correct period "look" or reliability. Indeed, this could prove a serious mistake. However, with 30 years' experience in re-enactment, we know exactly who to go to for the best performances. Let Historical Film Services source your specialist SAs, walk-ons and supporting actors and in doing so save yourself time, effort and money.
We offer two categories of specialist performer, who can usually be utilised either as SAs or walk-ons depending on need:
Specialist extras: Fight trained military personnel or civilian extras that come complete with (as appropriate) clothing/uniform, weaponry, horses and training for a specific era, for example, Roman legionaries, dark age spearmen, mounted medieval knights or English Civil War musketeers and pikemen. If you need walk-ons, SAs or supporting actors to represent a particular era, don't re-invent the wheel - use our ready-trained performers and save yourself time, effort and money.
Standard extras: Those that are trained to march,
fight etc but are required to depict a role or era different to one(s) they
normally fulfill. You provide the costume/equipment, we provide the extras, soldiers,
riders, fighters etc. Although the latter might need to (quickly) adapt to the
minutiae of drill, tactics etc, they are still infinitely faster, more adaptable,
believable and safer than untrained SAs/walk-ons starting from scratch. For
example, our recent Tetley's Bitter shoot. We provided the trained
soldiers, the production company provided the sets of armour from Gladiator.
It worked extremely well.
In addition, all the supporting artistes/walk-ons featured in the Battle of Orgreave were standard extras. With a minimum of time and fuss, we turned Romans, American Civil War Confederates, World War Two Germans and many other re-enactors into first-rate riot police and demonstrators. Such was their inherent discipline and skills that the real-life Lancashire Constabulary trainers present commented that our re-enactors were the best "recruits" they had ever worked with! Now this expertise is available to you through EventPlan.
Click here for typical costs
Why re-invent the wheel, waste time and money, or risk embarrassing mistakes when we can help? Be it for a feature film, documentary or advert, engage us to source the re-enactors/specialist historical performers you need. And if you utilise our services in military and other on-set co-ordination, you can relax in the knowledge that it will run smoothly.
Historical Film Services is the TV and film division of EventPlan Limited.
Home Page Reconstructions Credits Production photographs
Historical consultancy and advice Cavalry, vehicles, props, clothing, armour & weaponry
Typical costs Extras' datasbase about Historical Film Services
about Howard Giles Recreating the Battle of Orgreave
Updated 5 April 2008