Naman Shrestha
With Jo-Anne Brechin at the helm, GAF’s ‘Designing Christmas With You’ is a Christmas romantic comedy film that centers upon an interior designer named Colbie Clark who works for Klein and Smith Design. When Eloise Chapman requests her historic Chapman House to be decorated for its annual Christmas Ball by none other than Colbie, she jumps right into it and takes it as an opportunity to prove her worth and get promoted to the corporate design team. However, Colbie must work with the property’s charming manager, Ben Thurston.
Despite starting on the wrong foot, the two hit it off as they begin to spend more time together, even building mutual respect between themselves. One thing leads to another and they end up falling for each other. Originally titled ‘Mistletoe Moments,’ the movie unfolds in a city during the holiday season with the snow-laden streets complementing the festive time of the year. As Colbie and Ben work closely on the Chapman House, the viewers are likely to have questions regarding the actual location of the property and other sites that feature in ‘Designing Christmas With You.’
Where Was Designing Christmas With You Filmed?
The filming unit traveled all the way to Australia, especially to the city of Brisbane, to shoot ‘Designing Christmas With You.’ From the looks of it, the principal photography for the film got underway in June 2023 and wrapped up by the end of the same month. So, let us take a look at all the specific sites that were transformed into film sets for the production of the GAF movie.
Brisbane, Australia
All the pivotal sequences for ‘Designing Christmas With You’ were lensed in and around Brisbane, the capital of the Australian state of Queensland. The production team traversed through the snow-laden city and found some perfect spots to tape important scenes against suitable backdrops. The movie consists of a bunch of establishing and aerial shots, and some of them are of the snow-covered suburbs of Brisbane.
The hero location of the rom-com, the Chapman House, which acts as an additional character and around which most of the drama unfolds, is possibly represented by an actual mansion situated in and around the city of Brisbane. Since it is her third time shooting something in Queensland, the actor, Susie Abromeit, had quite a few things to say about the location. She stated, “I’m happy to be back in Australia and I’m really enjoying the shoot so far. The crew have done an incredible job of creating a Christmas wonderland and I’m excited to share this uplifting festive romance with audiences.”
Amidst all the establishments in the aerial shots, you might be able to spot a few buildings and local landmarks, such as Brisbane City Hall, the Story Bridge, the Parliament House, St. John’s Cathedral, and the Wheel of Brisbane. Besides ‘Designing Christmas With You,’ Brisbane has served as an important production location for various movies, including ‘Ticket to Paradise,’ ‘Christmas on the Farm,’ ‘Hearts Down Under,’ and ‘Love and Penguins.’
Designing Christmas With You Cast
‘Designing Christmas With You’ features Susie Abromeit in the garb of Colbie Clark, a skilled and ambitious interior designer. She is widely known for her performance as Pam in ‘Jessica Jones,’ Zoe Roth in ‘Chicago Med,’ and Mother Hardin in ‘The Forever Purge.’ Over the years, the talented actress has showcased her talent in several projects, such as ‘Sex Drive,’ ‘Battle Los Angeles,’ ‘Devious Maids,’ ‘As the World Turns,’ and ‘The Haves and the Have Nots.’ Starring opposite Susie is Liam McIntyre, who essays the character of Ben Thurston, the manager of Chapman House and Colbie’s love interest.
You may recognize Liam from his work on ‘Spartacus’ as the titular lead, ‘Them’ as Clarke Wendell, and ‘The Legend of Hercules’ as Sotiris. His other credits include ‘The Flash,’ ‘Pulse,’ and ‘Con Man.’ Vanessa Moltzen appears in the film as Gemma Clark, while Fiona Stewart portrays the role of Eloise Chapman. Aside from the aforementioned cast members, the supporting cast comprises Francesca Bianchi as Reggie, Barbara Bingham as Mila, Bruno Bonelli as Troy, Charlotte Gray as Remi, Brittany Grey as Layla, and Mia Grunwald as June. The GAF production also stars Oskar Houghton as Child, Kimberley Joseph as Mallory, Genevieve Mathews as Christmas Chorister, and Ben Wilson as Charity Ball Guest.
Read More: The Secret Gift of Christmas: Shooting Locations and Cast Details
