Stand-in: History and Key Facts

A stand-in, sometimes a lighting double, for film and television is a person who substitutes for the actor before filming, for technical purposes such as lighting and camera setup.

Stand-ins are helpful in the initial processes of film and television production.

Stand-ins allow the director of photography to light the set and the camera department to light and focus scenes while the actors are absent. The director will often ask stand-ins to deliver the scene dialogue ("lines") and walk through ("blocking") the scenes to be filmed.

Stand-ins are distinguished from doubles, who replace actors on camera from behind, in makeup, or during dangerous stunts. Stand-ins do not appear on camera. However, on some productions the jobs of stand-in and double may be done by the same person. In rare cases, a stand-in will appear on screen, sometimes as an in-joke. For instance, a scene in Heidi (1937) features the title character's grandfather (Jean Hersholt) mistake a stranger for Heidi (Shirley Temple); the look-alike was played by Temple's regular stand-in, Mary Lou Isleib. In another case, the actress who pretends to be Ann Darrow in the stage show during the final act of King Kong (2005) is played by Naomi Watts' stand-in, Julia Walshaw.

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