Movie producer thanks Swampscott

SWAMPSCOTT – The executive producer of the movie “Ted” thanked residents and town officials for their graciousness during the movie’s film shoot in town.”We had a wonderful time in Swampscott,” said Executive Producer Jason Clark in an interview on Monday. “The community and police were very accommodating and we felt really accepted, and the community was very gracious.”Hollywood visited Swampscott from May 4 through 6 to film the adult-comedy, which features Mark Wahlberg as a Boston man who, as a child, made a wish that his teddy bear could be brought to life.The wish was granted and, decades later, the two remain best friends.But while Wahlberg’s character has grown up, his furry friend is a foul-mouthed slacker voiced by Director Seth MacFarlane, the creator of the animated hit comedy “Family Guy.”The Teddy Bear title character is an unwelcome influence, according to Wahlberg’s love interest, played by Mila Kunis. Her character moves among a more sophisticated set led by her boss, Rex, who is played by Joel McHale of television’s “The Soup” and “Community.”When the filmmakers sought a location to film a swanky party at Rex’s house, Swampscott got the call.”We wanted an elegant house in an elegant community that stood on the waterline and showcased the best of East Coast wealth and sophistication,” said Clark. “We got that in spades.”But the weather made filming difficult at times.”We were planning to film outside (on the first day) and had prepared for that,” Clark said.But the cold and wet weather forced the movie to postpone shooting smaller scenes on the first day and instead forced them to move up the filming of the large party scenes.Clark said that multiple vans traveled back and forth between the set and staging area most of the night.Nevertheless, Police Chief Ronald Madigan said that the three days of shooting “went smoothly,” adding that the rain helped the police efforts by reducing the number of onlookers visiting the set.Town Administrator Andrew Maylor also reported a successful shoot.”Overall speaking with people at the production company, they thought everything went well,” Maylor said. “They enjoyed being in Swampscott and thought the residents interacted well with a major motion picture in town. I think it was a very positive experience and hopefully we can have something like it happen again.”