Every movie production requires a whole team of people to make the dream come to life. From the writer to the director to the actors to the crew, each person plays a role in the success or failure of the movie. When it comes to “The Shawshank Redemption,” that team of people included hundreds of local residents.
In 1993, Hollywood came to North Central Ohio as the movie’s producers came to Mansfield, Ashland, Upper Sandusky and other rural sites in the area to capture their vision. To make the now-legendary film come to life, the movie’s creators drafted locals to fill in the background as extras. Among those extras was Ben Bissman IV, owner of the historic Bissman Building.
Bissman said that his wife, Amber, was contacted by the Castle Rock Entertainment, producers of the movie, to see if their company, Acme Sign Company, could create billboard signs from the 1940s, the period when the beginning of the film is set.
“We contracted to do the signs, and through our communications, we were asked if we knew of any older buildings in the area that would make for an old hotel or boarding house. The Bissman Building was suggested to them, and after they sent a scout out to see it, it was a perfect fit,” Ben Bissman said.
The building was used as the site of The Brewer Hotel, where Brooks, played by James Whitmore, went to stay and then hung himself after being paroled from Shawshank. In addition, one of the offices in the building was used as the Portland Daily Bugle editor’s office.
“By now we had become friends with the producer Niki Marvin and Terrence Marsh, the production designer, and Amber asked if they needed any more extras. The next thing you know, myself, Amber and my dad were hired,” Ben Bissman said. “We still have our pay stubs and head shots serving as a reminder of our brief moment of Hollywood fame.”
The Bissmans were all cast as locals who were at Shawshank to see the arrest of the warden and guard after Andy Dufresne, played by Tim Robbins, exposed their corruption.
Ben Bissman said they got to spend a lot of time with Whitmore, as he repeatedly was filmed walking in front of the Bissman Building.
“We enjoyed great conversations with him, reminiscing about his roles in the old westerns like ‘Wagon Train,’ ‘Bonanza’ and ‘Gunsmoke.’ He was close friends with Clark Gable and told us stories of great parties and Hollywood extravaganzas he attended in the ’50s and ’60s. He seemed as excited as we were,” Ben Bissman said.
Bissman’s wife also had the chance to meet Morgan Freeman, who played Red, during a makeup session before filming one day.
Bob Wachtman of Upper Sandusky was chosen to portray the bailiff in the courtroom scene where Andy Dufresne is on trial, although Wachtman’s character never appeared on screen.
“I can’t even claim the distinction of ‘winding up on the cutting room floor.’ I never made it that far,” Wachtman said. “Sets are prepared without knowing exactly how the director, producer, and cinematographer will want to compose the scenes, so every part of the courtroom that might be within camera shot was made ready. I sat at my bailiff’s desk, which turned out to be about four feet off screen in one of the shots. That’s as close as I got to appearing in ‘The Shawshank Redemption,’ but I was an extra just the same.”
Wachtman, who is a volunteer at the Shawshank Woodshop in Upper Sandusky, described the experience as “unforgettable.”
“I have always been interested in photography—movies in particular—so this was an opportunity to watch, up close, as nearly all of the arts and crafts that go into a major film production were coming together right before my eyes,” Wachtman said.
Paul Smith, executive director of the Historic Ohio State Reformatory, remembers showing up for an open casting call and filming his scenes on the same day.
“They dressed us up in costumes, told us where to go and what to do,” Smith said. “We walked right behind Morgan Freeman in our scene.”
Although the scenes he was in ended up on the cutting room floor, Smith called the experience “the coolest thing.” Smith found the footage of the scene he was in online as a “lost scene,” showing Freeman walking through downtown Mansfield after he was released from prison, but Smith discovered that he was out of frame in the shots they used for the cut scene.
As the 20th anniversary of the film’s release is celebrated this weekend in Mansfield, those who were involved in its creation looked back on its legacy and what it means to them.
“You just can’t explain it,” Smith said of the film’s enduring popularity. “It just has such a following.”
Smith said more than 80,000 people pass through the gates of the reformatory each year, and a majority of them are drawn to the site because of the movie.
“Actor Jim Kisicki, who played the part of the bank manager near the end of the film, said it best during his visit to our Shawshank Prison Woodshop last year. ‘It’s become a classic. And the mark of a classic is that you never get tired of hearing the story.’ I can’t imagine I ever will,” Wachtman said.
Ben Bissman also hailed the film as a classic.
“’Shawshank’ was a brilliant piece of work. Stephen King’s mind has always intrigued me and the director, Frank Darabont, nailed it. Long live Shawshank!”
