Several northwest area students recently had the opportunity to work on a major motion picture with “Sixth Sense” star Haley Joel Osment. “Home of the Giants,” a coming-of-age film, tells the story of a high school journalist Robert “Gar” Gartland who gets caught in the middle when his best friend, the star of the school’s basketball team, is asked to throw a game. The film began shooting in the Greensboro area in August, using locals for a number of scenes.

Members of the Greensboro All-Stars Cheerleading Squad were used during game sequences doing stunts and cheers. Alex Arney, Meg Sumner, Jennifer Duncan, Emily Mohorn, Shelley Causey and Lauren Mosley were among those who sometimes endured long hours of filming or waiting to be filmed.

“You can’t believe it’s actually you sitting here with all these cameras and everything,” says Causey.

“And you realize how much goes into filming a movie,” adds Arney.

The girls say that the actual filming sequences were surprisingly brief compared to the time it took to set up cameras, lighting and actors. The coolest part was simply being there and meeting people.

“We got to meet the stars,” says Mohorn. “We’re on a first-name basis with them.”

“Haley and I are going to get married soon,” says Arney, grinning.

Seeing what goes on behind the scenes gave them quite the insider’s perspective on what it takes to make a movie. Setting up to film a one-minute sequence might take as long as an hour and a half. The toughest parts involved getting little sleep, waiting around between shots, and trying to keep up with their schoolwork after working until 2 or 3 o’clock in the morning.

“We’d go dragging into school, and someone would say, ‘Looking really rough today, Alex,’” says Arney, drawing a laugh from her friends. “‘Did you just wake up?’”

Alan Fox, who played a small role in the film, says that his initial part involved utilizing his basketball skills. A few days before shooting began, he was told that his part had been expanded to include a few lines.

“The acting part appealed to me,” says Fox, 18. “It’s neat being in a movie. I enjoyed it n the process of learning how it was done and just hanging around (the set) was fun for me.”

Fox also struck up a friendship with Ryan Merriman, who portrays the star basketball player. “The first night I met him, I took him to the Northwest-Western football game. He’s real down to earth.”

Teddy Ezell of Summerfield was also involved in the film, and served as a stand in for Haley Joel Osment.

At this writing, the film is scheduled for a December 2006 release. The girls say that if they’re not invited to the premiere, they’ll hold their own-though they might have to beg a red carpet from someone and substitute Hondas for limousines.

Although all of the students interviewed for this article enjoyed their experiences on the film set, they say they have no plans to dash off the Hollywood to seek stardom. There’s a certain thrill associated with being on a first-name basis with film stars, but they’ve all kept the experience in perspective. Except, possibly, for Arney, whose intent to become the future Mrs. Haley Joel Osment sends her friends into fits of laughter.

“We’re going to end up together, I’m telling you,” she says, trying to keep a straight face.