An Interview with a Zombie (Extra)

In 2009, after the death of her father and being downsized from a local newspaper, Tina Gleeson Andino, 36, of Iowa City was looking to infuse some fun into her life.

So she made the obvious choice: She became a member of the walking dead.

This was during the halcyon days of the Iowa film industry, when the film tax credit was still in existence, and film companies big and small shot movies all over the state of Iowa. One of those shot locally was a little zombie movie called Collapse a.k.a. "Collapse of the Living Dead" that will be shown for one of the few times in the United States at the Cedar Rapids Independent Film Festival this week.

Andino, now a mother and University of Iowa employee, tells Iowa City Patch how being a zombie extra played a part in making her hard times a little more fun.

(Note: this is an edited and abridged version of this interview)


Patch: You are a zombie in this movie, yes? Are you ever shown as a living prezombie in the movie?

Andino: Yes and no. I am part of a two to three minute long scene as one of a group of four or five full zombies ambling across a parking lot.

Patch: So what goes into acting like a zombie? Did they give you any direction or was it more up to your own interpretation?

Andino: A lot of time was spent on makeup -- hours. But when it came down to the actual acting part, we weren't given too much direction. We were told how to walk -- slowly, stiffly. I talked to one of the other zombies and we decided to think about being dead, and hungry, and just to stare fixedly on our target.

We were told a couple times to walk EVEN MORE slowly.

One of the people giving us direction suggested someone could drag a leg behind them, and I pounced on the opportunity to be that zombie.

Patch: So you got to be the leg dragging zombie?

Andino: Yes. Although slow, we were relentless.

Patch: Have you seen the movie, yet?

Andino: Nope. It comes out for the first time in the U.S. that I know of at an independent film festival in Cedar Rapids this week.

Patch: Why did you decide you wanted to be a zombie?

Andino: I wanted to infuse some fun into my life. I had been downsized from a newspaper job earlier that year and was retraining for web design, so the extra $50 in my life wasn't a bad thing. Also, my dad had died a year and a half earlier, and I knew this was something he would have just loved for me to do.

I knew I'd never be more available to do something like this. It was now or never. I knew kids were in our future, and that another "real job" was on the horizon.

Patch: What sort of makeup did you have on?

Andino:  I had a big gash through my face, so the makeup artist stuck a big glob of fake skin to my skin, then carved a line into it, painted it red, etc. I didn't think I'd get over having something glued to my face for that long, but it wasn't a big deal. Afterwards, it was fun to watch all the people on set just staring at us. Of course, they knew we were wearing makeup, but it looked so real.

I brought my own clothes I picked out from the Salvation Army. The night before, I had fun burning holes in the pants and shirt out behind our condo building. But it had to look torn, so I tore some of the spots too.

Patch: Did you know where any of the extras came from?

Andino: People did come from far and wide for the audition I attended, which was on the Coralville Strip. I remember meeting one girl who drove in from a couple hours away.

I remember hearing that there was a scene where all the high school students from either West Liberty or West Branch were filmed en masse as zombies.

I should mention that even though I don't watch a lot of TV/movies, I did recognize the main actor, Chris Mulkey. And before our scene he walked over and shook each of our hands. I thought that was a great gesture, very down to earth.

Patch: Where was your scene filmed?

Andino: It was filmed at Funcrest Bait and Tackle, near the Coralville Reservoir.

Chris Mulkey rescues a woman from the zombies in the store, then guides her out into the parking lot. Four of us zombies are slowly crossing the parking lot, looking emotionless and hungry.

In the scene, Mulkey shot one of my co-zombies in the head. So he was firing blanks, and then the other zombie extra would fall onto a wrestling mat sort of deal. The two main actors escaped in the car, and we slowly turned toward the car, while still walking slowly, as they drove away.

Patch: Anything else you'd want to tell people who are interested in breaking into the zombie business?

Andino: Do it! You won't regret it, and will be captured in all your gore on the big screen forever! Also, if you get a chance to be shot or attack someone in a zombie scene, take it.

Hopefully the film business in Iowa picks up again. I saw "16 to Life" at and was very impressed. Iowa has some great talent.
 
Patch: Do you think that is an example of some of the weird stuff you generally end up doing when you're unemployed? I appreciated a lot of those experiences I had while I was unemployed.

Andino: For sure. I also worked for BVS being a background actress in their bank videos. I'd go to a bank dressed to the nines in business attire, then stand around miles away from the conversation they were actually filming, talking to other people. $25/hr!

Patch: (laughter) Which did you prefer more, business woman or zombie?
 
Andino: I don't think there is any contest there. Zombie all the way! Now a businesswoman zombie, that would be a good idea, too.