Writer Topher Payne Brings Christmas Romance To Hallmark
Copyright 2016 Crown Media United States LLC/Photographer: Robert Clark
Atlanta writer Topher Payne has a Hallmark card for us.
Over the summer, Payne had his television debut with his Hallmark movie “My Summer Prince.” Speaking to “City Lights” host Lois Reitzes then, he hinted that he would be back on the network for Christmas and true to his word, he is back. Payne is the screenwriter of the upcoming Hallmark original movie “Broadcasting Christmas,” starring Dean Cain and Melissa Joan Hart.
In the story, a TV newscaster and an intrepid reporter with a romantic past find themselves competing for the same job as the co-host of America’s most popular morning news-talk program “Rise And Shine.” As the competition narrows, they begin to rediscover a spark between them that started long ago.
The core of the story came from pitch from Hallmark for a story about rival newscasters.
“That struck me as an unusual pitch for a Christmas movie,” says Payne. “I loved the competition element of it, I loved the idea that my two leads were going to be people who were very driven in their professional careers.”
“Effectively, we’re telling a story about grown-ups,” he says.
“Broadcasting Christmas” premiers on the Hallmark Channel Wednesday, Nov. 23 at 8 p.m.
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