The vampire girls strolled over, trying to pretend they were exactly where they were supposed to be.
A woman with a tight bun and a clipboard walked by. She peered at everything and made notes to herself. Ivy held her breath, but the woman just glanced at them and kept walking.
We’re in, Ivy thought.
‘Oh my darkness,’ Sophia said.
‘What?’ Ivy said, looking around.
‘That is an Xtra Vision LT-2K high definition digital camera with interchangeable optical assembly, a touch screen interface and four hours of continuous shooting.’ Sophia sighed and practically floated towards the very-expensive-looking piece of equipment.
‘Um, Sophia?’ But her friend was already reaching out a hand to the camera, stroking its digital screen.
The neon danger sign in the back of Ivy’s mind had started flashing and she stepped forward to stop her. ‘Sophia –’
‘Hey, you girls!’
Ivy froze at the sound of a stern voice and Sophia whipped around, almost knocking the camera over.
‘Maybe we should have stayed with Jackson,’ Ivy whispered and turned slowly to face the music.
‘Where are your set passes?’ said a pale, thin woman with frizzy black hair poking out from underneath a pair of over-sized headphones.
Ivy and Sophia stood guilty and silent. It was fun while it lasted, Ivy thought.
‘You aren’t supposed to be here, are you?’ the woman asked in a thick New York accent.
Ivy shook her head.
‘I don’t know why we don’t make maps for reception to give out. Honestly!’
‘Huh?’ said Sophia.
But Ivy nodded cautiously. Maybe we aren’t going to get completely staked, she thought.
The woman looked them both over. ‘Hmmm. Yes, I can see why they picked you two – the alternative style, the nice faces. Good.’
Ivy looked at Sophia, who seemed just as confused.
‘I’m Lillian, the second assistant director.’ She checked her watch. ‘Come with me and I’ll get you to the extras trailer.’
The extras trailer? Ivy thought.
Lillian started to walk away.
‘Does this mean we’re going to be in the movie?’ Ivy asked Sophia.
‘I think so!’ Sophia almost skipped after the woman and Ivy hurried to keep up.
Ivy normally hated the spotlight, but this wasn’t centre stage. She was only going to be in the background. Killer!
‘Get your rears in gear, ladies,’ Lillian said. ‘We’ve got to get you ready for blocking the first set-up.’
Ivy had no idea what she was talking about, but Sophia whispered, ‘That means planning out how the actors will move in a scene.’
‘Thank darkness you’re here to translate,’ Ivy said.
They marched up to a big trailer labelled ‘Background Artists’ and Lillian handed over two location passes, then thumped on the door.