Anna Karenina film casts Oxford students

Cherwell.org

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Hannah Grosskopf on Friday 4th November 2011

Photograph: Flickr

Open castings were held in Cowley on Saturday to find extras for the new Anna Karenina blockbuster that will be released next year.

The film is being made by Joe Wright, the director of Atonement and Pride and Prejudice, and will star Keira Knightley and Jude Law. Part of the filming will take place at a heritage railway centre near Didcot Parkway station which will serve as a mock Russian location.

For this section of the production the filmmakers wanted several extras ideally of Russian or Eastern European descent. The casting session was entirely open to the public but the producers did also specifically contact the Oxford University Russian Society to encourage students to attend.
Second year English student, Esme Hicks, told Cherwell that she went along to the auditions because of the prospect of “good pay and something to put on my CV and the opportunity to see a proper big-dog film director at work.”

Karis Alpcan, a Univ History and German student, explained the audition process, “When we got there, we queued for about an hour, then we had to fill in a form with our basic information, had our measurements taken and then had our photos done by a photographer there. The process took about 10 minutes.”

Those that are selected to take part in the filming will be paid £100 for each of the four days of filming which will begin on the 11th November

Hopefuls audition at East Oxford church for Anna Karenina - Matthew Macfadyen and Keira Knightley

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6:00pm Tuesday 1st November 2011

About 400 movie fans queued at an East Oxford church for the chance to star as an extra in Keira Knightley’s new film.

They waited at Cowley Road Methodist Church for a chance to be immortalised on the silver screen in an adaptation of Leo Tolstoy’s classic novel Anna Karenina.

Parts of the movie, to star Jude Law, will be shot at Didcot Railway Centre this month and about 120 parts were up for grabs.

Jo McGiluary, 29, of Oxford, said: “This is what I do for a living.  “I did Holby City this week, and I have done World War Z and X-Men in the past, but I do not want to become a professional actress.
“For me, this is about getting some money. It is good pay – on each day you can get about £100.”
Angelina Tokhtieva, 27, from St Albans in Hertfordshire, said: “I just want to get the experience – you do not get to do this kind of thing every day.

“I was very lucky to get a part as an extra in Harry Potter, and that will stay with me for a long time, so I wanted to do this film as well.”  Monika Laburda, 24, from Headington, said: “I am here for the fun, and I think it will be a very interesting experience as well.

“The form of movie making will be interesting to see. In Poland, we do not have the chance to see something like this.”  Joanna Bagniewska, 26, of Abingdon Road, Oxford, said: “I am a student and I need the money.

“Apparently, being an extra pays much better than doing tutoring in college.”
She added: “It would be nice to meet Keira Knightley, but there are so many interesting people coming to Oxford anyway that it is not that important to meet her.

“We have the opportunity to meet presidents of countries, politicians and scientists in Oxford.”
Holly Ogdon, 17, of Summertown, said: “I am here for the experience and to meet interesting people. I have done plays in the past but I have never been in a film.”

Set in Russian high-society during the late 19th century, the film will tell the story of Anna Karenina’s search for love.

The film will be directed by Joe Wright, who has enjoyed award- winning and box office success with Pride and Prejudice and Atonement – also starring Miss Knightley – and The Soloist.
It is being produced by Working Title Films and is set to be released next year.

Filming for Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows, to star Robert Downey Jr and Jude Law, took place at the Didcot centre last year.