Extra from Butler gets face time in 'Dark Knight'
During a tense standoff between the authorities and brazen criminals, Joe Fishel felt the impact of the blasts.
“That startled me,” Fishel said. “I could feel the heat from the explosions on my face.”
Although the standoff was staged during the filming of “The Dark Knight Rises,” the detonations were real.
Fishel, 43, of Butler said he enjoyed that element of director Christopher Nolan's moviemaking: traditional special effects over computer animation.
That particular scene was Fishel's favorite, and it didn't make the final cut anyway.
What did survive the editing process was a scene with Fishel, who portrayed a Gotham City policeman, reacting to a series of explosions.
“There's actually one good face shot of me,” he said.
The scene is at the 90-minute mark in the movie.
“I'm looking back at the tunnel,” Fishel said.
He didn't realize how the scene would be shown at the time it was filmed, so seeing his face profiled was a pleasant surprise.
“It doesn't look the way you think it would,” Fishel said.
During one break in filming, Fishel had the chance to speak with actor Matthew Modine, who played Deputy Police Commissioner Peter Foley.
Extras are instructed to not talk with any name actors unless they initiate a discussion, as Modine did in this case.Fishel adhered to the policy, taking it to the extreme in director Nolan's case.“I tried to not even look in his direction,” said Fishel, who's quickly becoming a veteran of movies filmed in Pittsburgh.“The Dark Knight Rises” is one of eight movies Fishel has done.In coming months, he may appear in the following films depending on how they're edited: “Out of the Furnace,” another Christian Bale film; “Jack Reacher” starring Tom Cruise; “The Perks of Being a Wallflower” starring Emma Watson of “Harry Potter” fame; and “Promised Land” with Matt Damon.Unlike most films in which Fishel deals with assistant directors or production assistants, he received instructions from director Christopher McQuarrie for “Jack Reacher.”Fishel said he's only starstruck the first time he spots a famous actor. After that, he's too busy working to gawk.Often the actors don't appear the same in person as they do in film, Fishel said. Cruise is not only shorter than he seems, but more slender as well. Bale was taller than expected.Fishel has taken note of the tricks done to enhance a character's appearance.For “The Dark Knight Rises,” the villainous Bane portrayed by Tom Hardy looks bigger because he is surrounded by shorter men.Fishel started filming commercials and independent films 10 years ago.When he started, movie companies just needed extras to populate scenes.Fishel said that process has evolved in extras being typecast.He most often plays a police officer or a parent.Although Fishel has taken a couple acting classes, he has no dreams of leaving his job teaching social studies at Kittanning High School.“It's very difficult to get into acting full-time,” he said.Fishel takes advantage of his summer vacations and holiday breaks to perform as an extra.Out of all the movies he's done, Fishel said he enjoyed working with Batman the most. He said the movie had the most preparation beforehand, with two days of training, one day of rehearsal and five days of filming.Even the food on the set was top notch. “It was the best buffet I had in my life,” Fishel said.
