Filming begins in Carson City, Gardnerville for Lifetime holiday movie

GARDNERVILLE, Nev. — Filming has begun in Minden, Gardnerville and Carson City for “Once Upon a Main Street,” a new Hartbreak Films holiday movie to air on the Lifetime Channel this winter.

The film company was also in Carson City earlier this year filming scenes for another Christmas movie titled “Feliz NaviDad,” starring Mario Lopez.

According to a late-August press release from the Northern Nevada Development Authority, the group and Visit Carson Valley have collaborated over the past year to work with the Nevada Film Office on a pilot project to identify attributes that Douglas County could offer to film, television and other production companies.

These included beautiful and picturesque landscapes, historic and unique buildings, and distinctive and accessible properties.

Crews began filming this week, complete with fake snow to create the facade of winter.

According to NNDA, in addition to main filming locations in Minden and Gardnerville, Carson City’s Telegraph Square will be used as a “main street” for a couple of scenes.

“The film industry has long been a part of Nevada’s history," NNDA CEO Rob Hooper said in a statement. "... Promoting the Carson Valley area for film production leverages the region’s assets appealing to filmmakers to generate direct dollars and positive economic impact for Douglas County.”

According to recent data from the Motion Picture Association of America, the Film and Television production industry creates and supports 2.6 million jobs in all 50 states, both in front of and behind the camera.

The industry comprises over 93,000 businesses, 87% of which are small businesses. It also pays out $44 billion per year to over 250,000 local businesses in cities and towns across the U.S. and may inject as much as $250,000 per day into local economies for films shot on location.

"While working on this project, it became even more apparent how special our community is, in both the history and diverse settings," Jan Vandermade, executive director of Visit Carson Valley, said in a statement. "There is a greater synergy that comes when multiple entities collaborate and come together to shine a light on Carson Valley.”