Hallmark "A Costa Rican Wedding"
The Hallmark Channel’s newest summer movie, “A Costa Rican Wedding ,” premieres on Saturday, August 17, at 8 p.m. Eastern/7 p.m. Central (although it was released earlier on Hallmark Movies Now.) The movie stars Rhiannon Fish and Christopher Russell. Read on to learn all about where it was filmed and see behind-the-scenes cast stories.
‘A Costa Rican Wedding’ Was Filmed in Costa Rica
According to IMDb, “A Costa Rican Wedding” was filmed on location in Costa Rica, including Punta Leona, Puntarenas, Tabacon, La Fortuna, Sarapiqui, River Tarcoles and Jaco.
There are a lot of trivia facts on IMDb concerning the movie, including:
- At one point, the tides on the river Tarcoles came in faster than expected and the crew had to abandon shooting and move somewhere else.
- Fish and Russell performed their own stunts.
- Fish told Digital Journal that “all the locations and all the creates were 100 percent real.” IMDb noted there was a real viper on set, but it was camouflaged, so it only appears in one shot.
- A real tarantula was filmed on Fish, IMDb and TV Fanatic reported.
- Russell told Us Weekly that an alligator seen in the movie “just lives in that river.”
- They could only reach the secret beach location by boat, but a rowing class and two family parties were already there when the crew arrived.
- The wedding location wasn’t easy to reach. The crew had to hike and then ford a river in a raft.
- They used a real mudslide, Fish told Us Weekly.
Marysela Zamora from the National Film Commission said the movie brought approximately $300,000 to Costa Rica, largely due to the use of local labor and talent, Tico Times reported. They included actors, actresses, and service professionals working in areas like wardrobe, camera operations, catering, transportation, and accommodations.
Fish joked on Instagram: “The above scenes were cut because Chris can’t sit on a surfboard.”
She also posted a picture with the caption “pura vida.”
Russell posted a similar picture.
Fish also posted a reel that includes a lot of footage from behind the scenes.
And she shared a video of the infamous tarantula.
Maureen Kedes posted a picture of the cast together during a photoshoot.
In another video, Fish draws a lot of laughs when she explained what she had to do while on set.
Meet the Cast
Hallmark’s synopsis reads: “A klutzy Maid of Honor gets help from her handsome nemesis when things go awry at her best friend’s Costa Rican wedding.”
Rhiannon Fish made her screen debut as Lisa Jeffries in the soap opera “Neighbours,” according to her bio. She later starred as Rocky in the Disney Channel series “As the Bell Rings” and played Laura in “Playing for Charlie.” From 2010 to 2013, she portrayed April Scott on “Home and Away.” Fish also participated in season 13 of “Dancing with the Stars” and joined the recurring cast of “The 100” as Ontari in 2016.
Fish has been candid about her struggles with mental health, including anxiety, depression, OCD, and a past eating disorder. She has openly discussed the emotional toll that the entertainment industry can take on actors, mentioning how she has witnessed Los Angeles “break” people, Hit.com.au reported.
Christopher Russell is a well-known actor whose career includes over 60 movies, with his roles predominantly in romantic comedies, according to his bio. He’s also branched out into other genres, including horror and crime. While in high school, Russell won the Sears Drama Festival Award of Excellence.
Also starring in the movie, according to Hallmark’s press statement, are:
- Brittany Carel (Phoebe)
- Cj Hammond (Jamal)
- Kourtney George (Tyesha)
- Maureen Kedes (Sue)
- Gregory M. Mitchell (Harold)
- Jon Briddell (Bruce)
- Jodi Beck (Bonnie)
- Pedro Jose Sanchez Rovira (Estaban)
- Fernado Bolanos (Shane)
- Juliana Wimbles (Camille)
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