How to Make a Christmas Movie: Five Tips for Filmmakers

No winter holiday season passes without a Christmas movie by a crackling fire, and if you can throw in some freshly baked ginger biscuits and a glass of hazelnut milk, we will not say no. Classics such as Home Alone and A Christmas Story are timeless pieces that have been, and will remain, favourites for older generations as much as for the ones that follow. Imagine watching the same film you adored as a child again with your own children. It feels like magic. Christmas magic.

If you are the filmmaker, though, you may feel the pressure of creating a flawless Christmas movie that leaves your audience warm and fuzzy inside with that special holiday cheer. It has to be meaningful, unique and magical. It needs an interesting storyline, but not only that. Watch enough Christmas movies and you will notice a certain pattern, a winning equation. Here are its five parts.

1. The Christmas setting

No Christmas movie can call itself a Christmas movie without the perfect Christmas setting (yes, that is Christmas three times in one short sentence). What makes these films so special is the sheer amount of decoration. Let's face it, we all dream of a house covered in Christmas lights, a porch and front garden strung with glittering fairy lights, and an interior with a towering tree and every kind of ornament. Christmas movies must contain all of the above. We are so hung up on the decorations because they are the picture of how we want our own homes to look (unless you are the Christmas Scrooge). Decorations, lights and sparkle create the Christmas atmosphere.

Watch: Deck the Halls (2006)

2. Put your heart and soul into it

You need to touch your audience on a much deeper level. Creating a genuine holiday classic takes more than a setting and a soundtrack full of Christmas hymns. All the surface pieces of the puzzle matter, but the film must have heart. Think of your own past experiences. How have you been touched? Can you build a feel-good film around it? If the story is truly meaningful to you, it is far more likely to reach your audience. Remember, people watch Christmas movies to feel good.

Watch: The Holiday (2006)

3. Add a dose of jeopardy

Every film needs a climax, and Christmas movies are no exception. Something has to be in jeopardy. There has to be a moment of uncertainty when Christmas itself, or the protagonist's goal, is under threat. For more on building that tension, see the art of suspense.

Watch: How the Grinch Stole Christmas (2000)

4. Bring the characters together

To add depth and meaning to your Christmas movie you need a dose of emotion, and there is no better way to do it than by uniting loved ones and friends. The holiday season is when people come together to celebrate and to cherish moments of unconditional love. People also feel at their most vulnerable at this time of year. They love fiercely, make brave gestures, forgive in an instant and reconnect with the people who once meant the world to them. Build on the relationships between loved ones or friends and you cannot go wrong. It helps to know how to write believable characters first.

Watch: Love Actually (2003)

5. Aim to be family friendly

As we said, Christmas movies are best watched in a warm room beside the tree, with children present. If you want your film to be memorable and timeless, keep it family friendly and appropriate for all audiences.

Watch: The Santa Clause (1994)

There you have it, our five tips for the perfect Christmas movie. If you are crowdfunding your production, get the campaign right before you launch. Now all we want to do is sit down with a cup of hot chocolate in front of a cosy fire and watch The Holiday. Who's with us?

When you are ready to cast yours, the actors on Actorly can bring your Christmas movie to life. When you post a casting on Actorly, the breakdown goes out to the actors on Actorly, to registered Irish agencies, or to both, depending on who you want to hear from. Join Actorly as a caster and post your casting.