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Picture it: mid-October, 2025. You’re splayed out on the couch, casually enjoying a re-run of your favourite 80s sitcom on cable television when an ad appears promoting the Countdown to Christmas on the Hallmark Channel, or W Network here in Canada.
For some, it sparks excitement — the holidays are approaching, and the season is not complete without sipping hot cocoa while watching a selection of cozy Christmas movies. For others, that 24-hour rotation of Christmas cheer is a living nightmare.
Love it or hate it though, Hallmark movies are big business in B.C., where the company films the about 40 per cent of its content — Christmas and year-round programming.
When Hallmark films in B.C., it hires almost exclusively local workers to make it happen. The province estimates about 100 local crew members are hired for each movie.
“For the most part, it’s one or two people from outside B.C. that we’ll bring up,” said Randy Pope, senior vice president of programming and development for Hallmark Channel.
Of course, any film production in B.C. means jobs for local crews and actors. But the impact these movies have on the economy is far more wide-reaching than that.
When a production comes to town, the cast and crew spend money on catering, in local coffee shops, at restaurants, shopping for props in local boutiques, getting dry-cleaning done, buying lumber for sets — the list goes on.
“There’s so much more money spent beyond what you would think in a film production,” said Gemma Martini, founder and CEO of Martini Studios — a Langley-based production facility often used by Hallmark Media, among other companies.
And when Hallmark is making dozens upon dozens of films in B.C. each year, that injection of cash into the local economy adds up.
In an emailed statement to CBC News, the province’s Ministry of Tourism, Arts, Culture and Sport said that while it couldn’t drill down exactly how much Hallmark alone contributes to B.C.’s economy, the film and TV industry overall generated more than $2 billion in 2023.
Hallmark tourism brings viewers to B.C.
The growing popularity of Hallmark movies sparks interest from fans who want to see spots where things were shot, or immerse themselves in Hallmark-like attractions.
Martini Studios hosts an annual event called Merry & Bright at Martini Town, where people can visit a “meticulously” constructed set — one that’s used for Hallmark productions — and feel like they’re in an actual Hallmark movie.
“I think it’s pretty amazing and incredible that [Hallmark has] this fan base,” Martini said.
The event started in 2023 amid industry strikes and uncertainty after the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. When Martini noticed contractors on-site taking photos and asking questions about the set, she realized there was a market for people who love Hallmark and want to see the places where films are made.
“Some, they come because it’s an opportunity to bring their family, have a nice Christmas experience outside,” Martini said. “For some people, they come because they want some amazing photos for their Christmas card and some people come because they have curiosity around being on a film set.”
Similarly, the Jamestown set in Langley, where popular Hallmark series When Calls the Heart is made, offers tours for fans when the show isn’t filming.
Pope said Hallmark has been approached about doing tours of filming locations, while the City of Maple Ridge publishes a whole list of holiday movies, which includes Hallmark and other productions like it, shot in town.
Martini is also involved in a new website called Cineventure that directs cinephiles to spots where films have been shot, including When Calls the Heart.
Between tourism, jobs and the additional spending that comes with making a movie in B.C., the Arts Ministry said movie-making in B.C. is an important of the economy.
“Movies of the week — for which Hallmark is especially well-known — are a significant and celebrated part of B.C.’s live-action production mix,” the ministry said.
