The new Christmas movie on Netflix may have Connecticut residents doing doubletakes. “The Noel Diary” was filmed at RJ Julia Booksellers in Madison, Griswold Inn in Essex, New Canaan town hall, Manchester Memorial Hospital and other Connecticut locations.
“The Noel Diary” stars Justin Hartley of “This is Us” as well as James Remar, Bonnie Bedelia, Essence Atkins and Barrett Doss. It is available for viewing on Thanksgiving Day. The movie, based on the novel by Richard Paul Evans, was directed by Charles Shyer, who made “Private Benjamin” and “The Parent Trap.”
Andrew Gernhard, the film’s producer and founder, has been making Christmas movies in Connecticut for about five years now. His production company, Rocky Hill-based Synthetic Cinema International, also has been making creature features here since 2004.
“This is not a typical Christmas romance story. It happens to take place at Christmas rather than Christmas being at the forefront of the story,” Gernhard said. “There is a lot of emotion. People are going to cry. This is the year of the sad Christmas movie.”
The hospital scenes were filmed at Manchester Memorial. Gernhard said during filming, only two hospitals in the state had portion shut down due to COVID, which would make filming possible. The other one, Bristol Hospital, was booked by “Call Me Jane,” the Sigourney Weaver abortion drama. So “Noel Diary” got Manchester.
Southington actor
An 8-year-old Southington boy plays a role that is small, but crucial to the plot. Baylen Bielitz, a third-grader at Derynoski School, has been building a film career for a few years. He had fun making “The Noel Diary.”
“I got to be in a tree. That was fun. The movie was shot in the summer. They had fake snow everywhere. It smelled good, like cotton balls,” he said.
Next up for Bielitz is “Mothers’ Instinct,” with Anne Hathaway and Jessica Chastain. He portrays Hathaway’s son. Then comes “Here’s Yianni!” The drama tells the story of a little boy who lives next door to an elderly man with Alzheimer’s, who grows fond of the child while his memory fades away.
“That one is my biggest role yet,” Bielitz said.
Bielitz’s other screen credits include a small role in “WandaVision,” and the movie “Evil.”
Bielitz has to wait with the rest of the world to see “The Noel Diary.” “They had a screening in L.A. but they didn’t invite the kids,” he said.
Susan Dunne can be reached at sdunne@courant.com .
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