By Clayton Park

When Joseph Scott, manager of the Lake City Frontier Bank, was asked by a movie crew whether they could film a scene at the bank for an upcoming independent film, he was receptive to the idea, but cautiously so.

Before granting permission, he made sure to check out the credentials of the film company, Puzzle Productions of Moss Beach, Calif. ³I did check them out on the Internet to make sure they were a legitimate company and saw that they had real film permits from the City of Seattle,² said Scott.

What the movie crew asked of Scott took him by surprise.

They wanted him to appear in the movie ‹ playing himself as the bank¹s manager. On Sunday, Aug. 27, Puzzle Productions brought its camera crew and several of its cast members to Frontier Bank to film the scene.

The movie, ³Joyful Partaking (in the Sorrows of Life),² directed and produced by William Moreing, is based on an original screenplay also written by Moreing. He is a former Seattleite who was an actor here during the ¹80s, performing in plays at Intiman, ACT and the Pioneer Square Theater, to name a few. He described his new film as a comedy/drama about a ³day in the life of a neighborhood.² He added that it¹s an ensemble piece involving 6-7 subplots and featuring a cast of about 40 actors, all from the Seattle area, including veteran actor John Procaccino, known to local TV viewers for his movie reviews on KIRO Channel 7.

The scene filmed at Frontier Bank involves one of the movie¹s characters, played by John Procaccino, who decides to withdraw his entire life savings. Moreing wouldn¹t say why.

The entire film was shot this past summer in the Seattle area, including the Ballard neighborhood, where most of the action takes place. The scene at Frontier Bank was one of the final scenes to be shot.

The movie will then go into the editing stage, which will be done in California where Moreing now lives. If all goes as planned, Moreing would like to submit his movie to be shown at next year¹s Seattle International Film Festival as well as film festivals around the country. He expects to complete the film by the end of the year.

Puzzle Productions¹ locations scout Heather Seedorf, a Maple Leaf neighborhood resident, selected Frontier Bank, partly because of its proximity to the Lake City¹s Seattle Gun Shop, which also appears in the movie. Seedorf¹s locations scouting credits include a commercial for HomeGrocer.com and for an upcoming Sylvester Stallone movie titled ³Get Carter² (partially filmed in Pioneer Square), which is scheduled to hit the movie screens this coming Holiday season. She also worked as a props person for the high school comedy film ³10 Things I Hate About You,² which included a scene at Gas Works Park. For ³Joyful Partaking,² Seedorf will also make her on-screen debut, playing the part of a drive-through bank teller in the scene shot at Frontier Bank.

For Joseph Scott, appearing in a movie was probably the last thing he expected to do when he took over as manager of the Lake City Frontier Bank six months ago. Moreing praised Scott for being ³gracious and incredibly helpful² in allowing the film crew shoot a scene at the bank.

In addition to hiring Scott to play a bit part in the movie, Puzzle Productions also hired Scott¹s brother, Michael Whitaker of Community Patrol & Response, to handle security during the filming of the scene at Frontier Bank. Whitaker has North Seattle ties, himself, having served as an assistant football coach at Lincoln High School in Wallingford during the 1972-73 school year.