Falling for Christmas is succeeding on Netflix! And it is not for less because it has everything we could expect and more. We sat down with Janeen and Michael Damian, the film’s director and producer, respectively, about what it was like to shoot and work with a star like Lindsay Lohan, as well as the possibility of a sequel. Ready?
Here we go!
Janeen and Michael Damian have worked on quite a few Christmas movies together, so we wanted to know what’s special about this time of year for them.
Janeen commented that indeed “it’s a really special time of year for us. It’s a time to take a moment to just pause and reflect on your life and what’s important to you. I mean, I think the spirit of Christmas is about family and friends coming together and being grateful. That has a magical quality. For a few of us, it has a spiritual significance as well. So I think it’s just all the positive, warm and fuzzy, beautiful things all wrapped in one. And we love Christmas, and we love Christmas movies, which is why we decided to kind of go into that area. It’s been really a fun ride for us.”
And we think Janeen perfectly showed why we love Christmas movies so much and kicked off the holiday season before anyone else.
Janeen and Michael Damian have extensive filmography and in each of their projects, they learn something new. And they shared that Falling for Christmas “was a lot of fun, following a character, who you think has everything in the world. And then we have Christmas, a twist of fate, and some magic.”
“This movie allows Sierra Belmont [Lindsay Lohan] to see what life can be like on the other side of the mountain and helps her to find a much deeper meaning for her family, and about herself through this journey, and it’s great. It’s sort of a chance to take a look at yourself and how can you better your life. And it all happens during the Christmas season. Also, from a filmmaking standpoint, we’re always trying to find better ways of telling a story and just serving the characters in the story, bringing the magic to the screen in the best entertaining possible way and leaving you with a good positive message,” she added.
And that, without a doubt, is a large part of the reason why Falling for Christmas is succeeding!
There is no doubt that the movie has many funny moments, but if Janeen and Michael Damian had to choose which one was the most fun to film, what would they say?
They both agreed that “the toilet flushing or kind of trying to clean the bathroom. It was pretty funny on the set with the crew. The thing was that Lindsay didn’t want to see the raccoon ahead of time because she wanted the reaction to be a real one. So we had a wrangler outside with the raccoon, we had the crew were all there waiting, and she whips the curtain open and the rocking goes…everybody fell out everybody.”
“We mean, it was just the entire set. Everybody just roared, including whimsy and the camera crew, everybody. Everybody was surprised, it was very fun. It was really a great time because that involves the crew as well. And, usually, the crew was so conscientious about being quiet, even in a comedy. You can’t make any noise at all on that one. Everybody just busted up. It was a lot of fun,” they continued.
That scene was definitely one that made us laugh out loud and it was a very good decision on Lindsay Lohan’s part to do her reaction into a real one. It fitted perfectly!
Speaking of Lindsay Lohan, Falling for Christmas is her big comeback and we asked Janeen and Michael Damian what it was like working with an icon like her. Janeen shared that “it was a great experience. Lindsay is a very intelligent woman and she puts so much thought and preparation into her work, including choosing this project and the time that she was ready to come back to the screen. I think it was the pitch-perfect decision for her to choose a Christmas film. It’s a genre that she’s never done before and that her audience is really excited to see her on. She’s such an amazing actress and comedian and it was really fun working with her. She’s really prepared and very professional and really enjoys her work.”
I could not agree more with her and we shared impressions of how the industry didn’t do justice to Lindsay Lohan. Many of us grew up watching her movies, and over the years, it’s impossible not to realize that the industry didn’t treat her the way she deserved. Janeen Damian agreed with me and added that “she’s definitely back. And I think that everybody is seeing that now. She’s been embraced with a lot of love, and a lot of encouragement. And it’s really beautiful to see. We have over 31 million people watching the movie in three days. So I think everybody’s ready. We’re all rooting for her and she is back big time.”
Can we have an Amen over here? Please and thank you.
As Janeen pointed out, Falling for Christmas is one of Netflix’s biggest hits, so creating a sequel doesn’t seem too far-fetched. Michael Damian shared that “it’s just now coming to fruition and we’re just now seeing how the world is embracing it. We will be very open to a sequel. I mean, I think that sounds like a lot of fun. So we have to wait and see what’s going to happen. It’s in Netflix’s hands and the fans have to really push for it. We will listen to them if they want to see a sequel.”
So you know, we have to make it clear to Netflix that we want Falling for Christmas to continue with new adventures and stories!
Talking about the future, Janeen and Michael Damian told us that their next project “is called Irish Wish. It’s another romantic comedy that stars Lindsey [Lohan]. So we have just come back from Ireland. We just shot it and we are in the process of post-production and finishing the movie which will be coming out in about a year. We’re editing it right now and we can’t wait for everyone to see this. It’s definitely a love letter to Ireland. And Lindsey [Lohan] is another great incentive to see it.”
We can’t wait!
Lastly, before we wrap up the interview, Janeen and Michael Damian wanted to send a thank you message to all the fans who have supported the release of Falling for Christmas. Enjoy their words, this is a gift just for you.
“Your support means a lot to us. So thank you for watching the movie and making the film the number-one movie in the world. We really appreciate it. It means the world to all of us.”
They deserve all the love and support they are receiving because you can tell from miles away that they enjoy their work and put special energy into each of their films. You can really feel how important Falling for Christmas is to them and how grateful they are to have our full support. They make a terrific team and I look forward to speaking with them on – fingers crossed – a sequel to the film.
Falling for Christmas is streaming now on Netflix.
