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Ottawa, eastern Ontario takes centre stage in these Christmas movies this holiday season

A Chance for Christmas will air on CTV Drama this holiday season. (Photo courtesy: YouTube/Tubi) A Chance for Christmas will air on CTV Drama this holiday season. (Photo courtesy: YouTube/Tubi)
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OTTAWA -

'Tis the season for Christmas movies, and you will be able to spot locations in Ottawa and eastern Ontario in several movies on the small screen this holiday season.

Four holiday movies filmed in the Ottawa-area will be premiering on CTV Drama in the lead up to Christmas.  Other movies filmed in Ottawa will be airing on Netflix in the U.S., Hallmark and the Lifetime Channel this holiday season.

The Ottawa Film Office says 11 holiday films were shot in and around Ottawa this year, for companies like Hallmark, Lifetime and the Oprah Winfrey Network.

The films a Chance for Christmas, Under the Christmas Tree and Candy Cane Candidate were produced by local production company 1 Department Entertainment Services.

Here is a look at the schedule for movies filmed in Ottawa and eastern Ontario appearing on CTV Drama this holiday season:

A Chance for Christmas (Nov. 7 at 8 p.m. )

A Chance for Christmas stars Tori Anderson, Mykee Selkin and Habree Larratt.

"A social media influencer and her manager must re-live Christmas Eve until she can hit enough views and learn to love her imperfect life," said the movie synopsis.

Prominent Ottawa area locations:

  • Almonte Riverside Inn

Royally Wrapped for Christmas (Dec. 3 at 8 p.m.)

Royally Wrapped stars Jen Lilley and Brendan Fehr.

"Lindsay Palmer, the NY director of an international charity organization, is called to the Kingdom of Veronica by the royal family who runs the foundation to interview for the job of overseeing the whole operation. As Lindsay is put through the interview process, she ends up finding true love with the prince," says the movie synopsis.

Prominent Ottawa locations:

  • ByWard Market
  • Knox Presbyterian Church
  • Sparks Street
  • The Global Centre for Pluralism
  • The ByTown Museum

Under the Christmas Tree (Dec 22 at 8 p.m.)

Under the Christmas Tree stars Elise Bauman, Tattiawna Jones and Ricki Lake.

"Marketing whiz Alma Beltran and Christmas tree whisperer Charlie Freemont cross paths when Charlie finds the perfect tree for the Maine Governor’s Holiday Celebration — right in Alma’s back yard. While they initially spar, romantic sparks soon begin to fly between the two women as the enchanting tree and some Christmas fairy dust from the town’s pâtissière extraordinaire bring out the best in them and spark each other to take leaps of faith and fight for love and Christmas magic," said the movie synopsis.

Prominent Ottawa locations:

  • Kanata Centrum Shopping Centre
  • Oakhurst Farm

Candy Cane Candidate (Dec. 24 at 8 p.m.)

The Candy Cane Candidate stars Jacky Lai and Jake Epstein.

"Natural-born leader Julia returns to her hometown of North Falls for Christmas after her recent political campaign for city council ended in a landslide loss. It’s the perfect place for Julia’s holiday escape — until she realizes coming home means running into her old high school rival, Parker. When the North Falls mayor resigns, the town holds an emergency election, and Julia and Parker find themselves once again facing off," said the movie synopsis. 

Prominent Ottawa and area locations:

  • ByWard Market
  • Golden Triangle
  • Almonte
  • Kemptville (including North Grenville District High School)

The Christmas Setup – Sept. 17 at 2 p.m. and 12 a.m.

The Christmas Setup is an American-Canadian romantic comedy television film staring Fran Drescher, Ben Lewis, Blake Lee, Ellen Wong and Chad Connell.

The Christmas Setup originally premiered last holiday season, and will be shown again this year on CTV Drama.

Prominent Ottawa locations:

  • The Glebe
  • Sparks Street

Other Christmas movies filmed in Ottawa set to appear on television this holiday season (Most of the movies premiered in 2020, and will be re-airing this holiday season)

  • Midnight at the Magnolia – Netflix U.S. (ByWard Market, MacDonald Gardens Park)
  • Christmas CEO – Hallmark Channel  (The Savoy Brasserie, Westboro, Ottawa Technical School)
  • Boyfriends of Christmas Past – Hallmark Channel  (ByWard Market/Hintonburg)
  • A Christmas Carousel – Hallmark Channel (Fairmont Chateau Laurier)
  • A Cheerful Christmas – Hallmark Channel (Rideau Canal Skateway/Cedar Hill Christmas Tree Farm)
  • Christmas Unwrapped – Lifetime (Rideau Canal/Infinity Convention Centre) 
  • A Christmas Scavenger Hunt - Hallmark (Almonte Old Town Hall/Cedar Hill Christmas Tree Farm)
  • Winter Castle – Hallmark (Cumberland Heritage Village Museum)

The Ottawa Film Office says several movies that were filmed in the Ottawa region in 2020 are available to stream for free on CTV Drama

  • Christmas Unwrapped (Rideau Canal/Infinity Convention Centre) 
  • Midnight at the Magnolia (ByWard Market, MacDonald Gardens Park)
  • Unlocking Christmas (Mississippi Valley Textile Museum, L.G. Lee & Sons and Superior Restaurant in Almonte)
  • A Christmas Village Romance (Cumberland Heritage Village Museum)

The Ottawa Film Office has created a Google map that shows the Christmas movie filming locations. 

The list of holiday movies that were filmed in the Ottawa region in 2021, according to the Ottawa Film Office

  • A Chance for Christmas
  • Boyfriends of Christmas Past
  • Christmas CEO
  • Royally Wrapped for Christmas
  • A Chestnut Family Christmas
  • A Sisterly Christmas
  • Maps and Mistletoe
  • Let's Get Married
  • A Christmas Stray
  • Under the Christmas Tree
  • Candy Cane Candidate 

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