A home at 34 Foxcroft Road in West Hartford was being used Tuesday for the filming of a ‘The Ghost of Christmas Always.’

Trailers, which served as actors’ dressing rooms, and space for hair and makeup, lined Foxcroft Road in West Hartford on Tuesday. Photo credit: Ronni Newton

By Ronni Newton

The spotlight is on West Hartford again – or more specifically shining on the actors inside and outside a home at 34 Foxcroft Road.

Wreaths, red ribbon and evergreen garland, and a large nutcracker which bedecked the 1926 colonial’s front porch were not relics of the past holiday season, but rather purposely placed there Tuesday morning as the home became the set for a Hallmark Christmas movie.

A home at 34 Foxcroft Road in West Hartford is being used in one of the scenes from a Hallmark Christmas movie. Photo credit: Ronni Newton

Trucks carrying lighting equipment and props, as well as trailers used as actors’ dressing rooms and for hair and makeup, lined the road throughout the day. The movie, “The Ghost of Christmas Always,” is being filmed in Connecticut over the next three weeks, a member of the crew said, with most of the scenes being shot in Hartford as well as at the West Hartford home.

Props and lighting equipment arrived on Foxcroft Road where a home was being used as the set of “The Ghost of Christmas Always.” Photo credit: Ronni Newton

A member of the production company, Connecticut-based Synthetic Cinema International, told We-Ha.com that the snow that fell last Friday, which still remains on the ground, provided the perfect touch and eliminated the need for fake snow to be used.

Some of the decorations that adorned Blue Back Square during the holiday season are being loaned to the production company, and will used to decorate the Bushnell Park Carousel, where many of the scenes will be filmed.

While details about “The Ghost of Christmas Always,” including the release date and cast, are being kept under wraps, West Hartford Public Relations Specialist Renée McCue did provide the following synopsis: “Katherine Marley is spending her afterlife working for the Department of Restoring Christmas Spirit as a Ghost of Christmas Present. She loves her job, visiting earth every Christmas to help one unsuspecting soul rediscover their Christmas spirit. But this year has something unusual in store for her. Their assignment is a man named Peter, and not only is it difficult to be sure why they’re ‘scrooging’ him (his Christmas spirit is on point), but there’s also the issue that Katherine and Peter just might be fated for each other. If fate was a real thing. Which it’s not … right? Ghosts of Christmas Always takes us behind the curtain, allowing us to experience the magic of A Christmas Carol from the ghosts perspective, while charming us with a romance for the ages.”

Connecticut’s tax credits have been a boon to the growth of the local film industry, and West Hartford has been the backdrop for multiple movies in the past year, including “Call Jane” – whose stars include Elizabeth Banks and Sigourney Weaver – and “Pep” – which stars James Madio, was based on the life of Hartford boxing icon Willie Pep.

It will be interesting to see if “Tina’s Hiding Space” appears in “The Ghost of Christmas Always.” Photo credit: Ronni Newton

“Call Jane” premiered at the Sundance Film Festival in January, and McCue said she has been advised that it will be released this fall in theaters and for streaming.

Len Murach served as a location manager for “Call Jane” as well as “The Ghost of Christmas Always,” and was involved in choosing the Foxcroft home.

“One of the reasons why we went back to West Hartford is because it was so great for ‘Call Jane,’ and we knew the style of houses,” he told We-Ha.com.

While “Call Jane” involved retrofitting the interior of homes used to be appropriate for the era of the movie – which was set in 1968 – Murach said there wasn’t the need to make extensive changes to the Foxcroft home for this movie.

Filming is taking place inside 34 Foxcroft Road. Lighting equipment is visible in the backyard. Photo credit: Ronni Newton

Trailers, which served as actors’ dressing rooms, and space for hair and makeup, lined Foxcroft Road in West Hartford on Tuesday. Photo credit: Ronni Newton

Trailers, which served as actors’ dressing rooms, and space for hair and makeup, lined Foxcroft Road in West Hartford on Tuesday. Photo credit: Ronni Newton

Trailers, which served as actors’ dressing rooms, and space for hair and makeup, lined Foxcroft Road in West Hartford on Tuesday. Photo credit: Ronni Newton

Trailers, which served as actors’ dressing rooms, and space for hair and makeup, lined Foxcroft Road in West Hartford on Tuesday. Photo credit: Ronni Newton

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