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Cairo: Ashour, 62, who has appeared in several local films as an extra, dreams of the day when he and his colleagues would have a guild to protect their rights.
"Many of my colleagues have been seriously harmed, crippled or died while filming. But they have received little, if, any attention," said Ashour at a coffee shop in central Cairo where local extras usually hang out for business or gossip about the showbiz community.
"We have been fighting for years to have this guild, which would give us a pension when we retire. But it has been to no avail," Ashour told Gulf News. He estimated the number of extras at hundreds.
"The extra is the one who appears in the scene without uttering a word. It is better to be a bit player than an extra because at least you have one line to say in the film," added Ashour, whose favourite genre is action.
Recapture its shine
Known as the Arab world's Hollywood, Egypt boasts the region's oldest film industry. After having been in the doldrums for the past two decades, the cinema industry is struggling to recapture its shine by increasing the quantity and quality of productions.
"The only way to get into show business as an extra is to find an assistant director or a casting director who would hire you," said Ali Abdul Ella, who has been in the field for many years. "They would not pick an extra unless he or she is special. They would put a male or female extra in a film if they wear stylish clothes, can ride a motorcycle or a horse, and do a bit of martial arts," Abdul Ella, 70, said.
He accused producers of being unfair to them. "We work long hours and under unfavourable circumstances in return for peanuts," complained Abdul Ella. "Some producers would pay an extra only £E20 (Dh14) for more than ten hours of work. They never give the extras food or transport allowances," said Abdul Ella, an ex-construction worker.
He survives on the £E80 (Dh,55.83) he gets from the Government under a special support scheme for the elderly. "I also receive financial help from my two married daughters."
"While producers provide the stars with the best meals and drinks, they rarely think about caring for extras."
Abdul Ella, whose voice trembled with emotions as he remembered working with big-name actors of the Egyptian cinema, said police add to their woes. "Policemen often stop us while we go back home late at night after a long day of work. We make people happy, but no-one cares if we are happy or not."
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