The Hallmark Channel’s latest holiday feature, A Suite Holiday Romance, brings to life the vibrant energy and enchantment of New York City during the festive season. Despite its setting in the heart of the Big Apple, the film was actually shot in Winnipeg, a surprising twist that adds a layer of intrigue to the production.

In a conversation with DECIDER via Zoom, lead actress Jessy Schram, who stars opposite Dominic Sherwood in this charming Christmas tale, explained the unconventional filming location. “The seasons were quite similar when we filmed,” Schram shared, emphasizing their efforts to imbue the film with an authentic New York atmosphere. “We did our best to bring as much of New York to it as we possibly could,” she added, mentioning the inclusion of iconic yellow taxis, bustling traffic, and an impressive number of background actors to recreate the city’s distinctive vibe.

The movie unfolds amidst the opulent setting of the fictional Grand Fairbanks Hotel, a venue that mirrors the grandeur of New York’s illustrious Plaza Hotel. At the core of the narrative are the Cordelia books, a beloved children’s series about a young girl who roams the halls of the Grand Fairbanks. This storyline forms the backdrop as writer Sabrina Post, played by Schram, writes an article about these cherished tales. Her work catches the attention of art dealer Grayson Westcott, portrayed by Al Sapienza, who enlists her to ghostwrite his memoir.

While staying at the hotel just days before Christmas, Sabrina’s life takes a romantic turn when she meets Ian Turner, played by Sherwood, at the hotel bar—a serendipitous encounter sparked by a mix-up over a sandwich.

Fans of Kay Thompson’s Eloise series, which chronicles the adventures of a young girl living in the Plaza Hotel, might find parallels in A Suite Holiday Romance. However, Schram drew inspiration from two other cherished children’s stories to bring her character to life, adding a personal touch to her performance in this festive film.

“To be honest, this is not Christmas, but I just put it into The Berenstain Bears because that was my thing growing up,” she shared. “So I just tried to find that joy and that love, and why she might’ve loved this young girl or the adventure of what it was. I thought of Matilda a lot, too. There was just different things from my own childhood that I was bringing in to kind of relate to this love and this inspiration that she brought.”

During her chat with DECIDER, Schram shares how she and the cast created chemistry on set, her own favorite Christmas movies, and also teased what’s in store for Dr. Hannah Asher in Chicago Med Season 11, which is currently airing on NBC.

DECIDER: Was any of this movie shot in New York City?

JESSY SCHRAM: I don’t want to tell you this, but no [laughs]. We shot it in Winnipeg. But the seasons were very similar when we did it, and we really tried to bring as much of New York to it as we possibly could. Did you feel like it was?

Oh, absolutely. There were shots that I thought were outside of my office. I was like, when was this filmed?

We brought in the taxis, we brought in the traffic. I mean, the amount of people! It was the most amount of background artists that I’ve actually ever experienced on one of these movies because our director [Jeff Beesley] really wanted to make it feel as genuinely New York as possible.

The story of Cornelia in the film, I can see takes inspiration, or reminds me of Eloise at the Plaza. Did you give that a rewatch or a re-read before taking this on?

I didn’t. I wish I would’ve. But to be honest, this is not Christmas, but I just put it into The Berenstain Bears because that was my thing growing up. So I just tried to find that joy and that love, and why she might’ve loved this young girl or the adventure of what it was. I thought of Matilda a lot, too. There was just different things from my own childhood that I was bringing in to kind of relate to this love and this inspiration that she brought.

You and Dominic Sherwood have such great chemistry in this movie. How did you two go about creating that? Had you two met before this film?

I had to do the table read from Zoom, and he was already in the room, and the chemistry started with him just speaking [laughs]. And I was like, oh you go. There it is! Because you’re always wondering what you need to work on or if it’s something that’s going to grow, but really the second he opened his mouth, the chemistry was there. He is so charming and really fantastic with comedy, and really great at giving the moments the extra twinkle that maybe they deserve. While we had just met for the first time, we became friends incredibly quick. It was fun on set. All of the actors would play UNO between scenes and I feel like we really grew our chemistry that way, to be honest. Just really crying with laughter between a lot of scenes.

In the spirit of it being the holiday season and with Countdown to Christmas, what is your favorite Christmas movie?

Home Alone is one of them. Home Alone, I would say, really takes the cake, and I think being in Chicago now, I’m just really feeling that with the weather changing. Obviously there’s always Love Actually that’s in the air, but I would say Home Alone is still my favorite Christmas movie. John Hughes can’t go wrong.

Very true. At DECIDER, we’re a website that’s dedicated to all things streaming. What are you watching right now?

Oh gosh, I am on Love Island USA right now! I’m admitting that to you. I banned it for a while because I only did [Love Island] UK. I didn’t believe in USA, and they really made a turn-around. I’m watching The Affair, so that’s something I’m bingeing. I’ve been told by a couple people to do Black Rabbit. To be honest, I put on a lot of rom-coms in the background and then end up sitting there watching them on the couch. So I find myself putting whatever the newest rom-com is and then just not doing laundry and watching it.

Would you be open to returning to this character for a future sequel, whether it be set at the holidays or at a different time of year?

Oh, very much so. I would love to work with this cast again and I feel like there is so much that we can explore, so I would love to play Sabrina again. I would love to be in this world with the ensemble cast. There’s Ian and Sabrina, but there’s also so many characters that fall in love themselves and support this storyline. We had a great time and I would just adore working with everybody again. So whatever holiday you want to put us in, I’ll be there.

What did you most identify with in Sabrina?

I think the imagination of her, and her really asking questions and loving to understand what makes people tick. I really liked her line of question for Grayson and how she went about really wanting to obviously know about his achievements, but really know about what makes him who she is. I think she kind of did the same thing with Ian, as well.

You mentioned that you’re in Chicago right now and I have to ask about Chicago Med in the midst of Season 11. What can you tease in store for the rest of the season?

Oh gosh, the rest of the season. This season, we’re really playing on time running out and how that makes somebody feel and how they deal with the time that they have. For Hannah, she is in her pregnancy and we’re playing that out right now and seeing what all happens. But there’s a lot of self-reflection going on. There’s a lot of chaos and a lot of messiness and a lot of confusion that’s going on, but this season is bringing so many storylines with so many guest stars and so many medical and personal stories that just really hit your heart. I feel like even if you haven’t been through these scenarios, you see these people living their lives and you could really connect with them. But for Hannah, it brings a lot of the chaos that comes with figuring out your identity while being pregnant, and the fears that come along with all the different things that could possibly happen while you’re pregnant and when the baby’s out.

Is there anything else that you’d like to share about your time filming A Suite Holiday Romance?

I hope they have as much fun as we did making it. I really hope that the romance that I fell in love with with multiple different characters is something that hits their heart and I just really hope that they feel the magic, because I think it’s a really magical and really fun film.

A Suite Holiday Romance premieres on Saturday, Dec. 13 on Hallmark Channel.

It’s the most wonderful time of the year! (At least, that’s what Andy Williams promised.) The holidays are a time to celebrate with family, friends, food, and, let’s not forget, fun things to watch. Whether you’re huddled up with the whole family in your living room or cozying up under the covers with your tablet, let Decider be your guide to all things festive this holiday season.