Director David Winning was in touch to remind me about his latest feature for Hallmark, “The 27-Hour Day.” (See the trailer, above.) It premieres Saturday on both the Hallmark Channel in the States and W Network in Canada.
Shot entirely in Agassiz and Langley, B.C., the film stars Hallmark favourites Autumn Reeser and Andrew Walker in a typically romantic tale about an entrepreneur who takes a much-needed break from her wellness empire for some doctor ordered rest and relaxation. Can she find true love and learn to exhale all at the same time?
Winning, originally from Calgary, says this is his 42nd feature and his 19th for Hallmark. He’s worked with Walker before, helping the Montreal native get his start on a fondly-remembered tween series Winning directed back in the mid-‘90s called Are You Afraid of the Dark?
Walker has established himself among the top romantic leads on the Crown Media network, starring in 16 Hallmark features and counting. In 2017 alone he shot four movies for the channel. Fellow Canadian Lillian Doucet-Roche, originally from Ottawa, is also in “The 27-Hour Day.”
Winning is currently halfway through shooting his next movie for Hallmark, a Christmas feature starring Danica McKellar and Kamloops, B.C.-native Benjamin Ayres. This will be former Wonder Years’ child star McKellar’s 16th Hallmark feature, ranking her among the most prolific actresses at the network. She still has a way to go, however, to catch reigning Hallmark Queens Kellie Martin (23 films), frequent Winning collaborator Lacey Chabert (24) and Candice Cameron Bure (26).
