Cameron Montemayor
ST. JOSEPH, Mo. (News-Press NOW) — Between the main stage of St. Joseph’s Missouri Theater, the holiday lights of Krug Park and Savannah’s historic Town Square, one Hollywood actress knew right away the two cities would be tailor made for a Christmas movie.
Now, as Kylee Levien, co-star of ‘A Chrismystery,’ reflects on the memorable shooting experience in St. Joseph and Savannah last December, capped off with the film’s release this November on both Amazon Prime and Apple TV, one of many highlights was the enthusiasm and movie-like interactions she witnessed even when the cameras weren’t rolling.
“I remember early on during filming, going out to a store one day and (A Chrismystery) was all people were talking about. I feel like I’ve never had that kind of experience before. It was straight out of a movie for me,” she said. “It was pretty surreal being the talk of the town.”
Jen Lilley, right, and Cody Mayo, are pictured in a poster for ‘A Chrismystery.’
Produced by Vision Films, Inc, of Los Angeles, the rom-com mystery follows the story of a big-city sheriff (Jen Lilley) who reluctantly returns with her daughter (Levien) to her hometown to take a deputy position after the death of her husband. The mystery unfolds when the town’s Christmas decorations are stolen one night from the town square.
Among many local connections in the film, local residents will see the Buchanan County Sheriff’s Office prominently featured throughout, with department uniforms and vehicles being used by Lilley and others for an authentic look.
For Levien, ‘A Chrismystery’ marked the young actress’ first time not only in St. Joseph, but the state of Missouri, a new opportunity to connect with audiences and communities and further her promising acting career at the same time.
“I remember Matt Toronto, our director, coming up to me when I first booked the role and they said ‘We have this beautiful location picked out,’” she said. “The town is just naturally cinematic, which for us is amazing. I had dreamed of filming a movie in a setting like that.”
If not for the producers of a different film discovering St. Joseph during the process of scouting for ‘25 Miles to Normal’ another locally-shot Hollywood film, the screenwriters of ‘A Chrismystery’ likely never would have found their dream holiday location.
Movie-goers will see a number of prominent local spots featured in “A Chrismystery”, including Krug Park, the Missouri Theater, Bode Middle School, the Savannah Town Square and various churches.
Actress Kylee Levien walks through the halls of Bode Middle School during the filming of ‘A Chrismystery’ in St. Joseph and Savannah last December.
Between 70 and 80 local students had the opportunity to stand in as extras during filming, with scenes shot in hallways and classrooms. She was highly complimentary of students and residents both for their cooperation and excitement during filming, which made the experience all the more special for the cast.
“To see how excited they were. They would come up and talk with me in between takes like ‘This is so cool. We’ve never had a movie filming'” she said with a smile. “Whereas in LA, I think everybody just has their own world, nobody cares as much.”
Connections with students were one of the many interactions she relished during the three and a half week film shoot, whether it was during busy 9.5-hour days on set or the few off-days in between exploring the city.
A talented and passionate figure skater, she made a special trip to Bode Ice Arena to the surprise of a group of elated young skaters. Local businesses and the North Shoppes were frequent spots as well, with one local boutique getting a special shoutout from Levien.
“We went to a really pretty boutique called Polished Pretty by Em,” she said. “I didn’t go back to the same place twice because I wanted to see as much as I could.”
A resident of sunny L.A., temperatures below 20 degrees were an authentic, albeit frigid part of the shoot, nothing a few handwarmers and frequent dancing to warmup couldn’t help fix, she said with a laugh. She and other cast members had a running joke about the “busy traffic” they often saw in St. Joseph compared with LA, where commutes are normally 90 minutes, if not longer.
Continuing the buzz that residents showed during filming last year — and a sign of growing support for the film industry locally — St. Joseph sold out a special red carpet premiere of the film last weekend at the Trail Theatre. The event featured a special Q&A afterward with Levien and Toronto returning to St. Joseph to interact with fans, a full-circle moment.
“We sold out the Trail Theatre. That was just a moment of accomplishment for me knowing people want to see that. And people are excited to see this movie that was filmed in the town that they live in,” she said.
A young actress on the rise
A native of Delaware, Levien grew up in a family where acting was commonplace, including three older siblings who all acted in their youth.
“I remember seeing one of my siblings’ faces on TV one time, and I was like, ‘That’s going to be me someday,'” she said. “I remember watching my face on a short film that I did called “The Rabbit Hole” in 2019. That was the first time I said ‘I can’t imagine not doing this from that day on.’”
Now in a highly-competitive industry filled with go-getters, Levien brings a range of different talents to the table, including skills as a gymnast, dancer and competitive figure skater, a sport she still heavily focuses on. She also has experience as a stuntman.
Actress Kylee Levien is pictured in this photo.
With eight projects on her IMDB filmography since 2024, including two standout projects with the Josh Brolin-led show “Outer Range” on Amazon Prime and the upcoming Christmas comedy-horror film “CATnip” starring Chevy Chase, Levien has risen through the Hollywood ranks since joining the industry nine years ago.
“The first time I saw myself on set, I thought of it just as a fun hobby. I was just having fun. Nine years later, it’s more of a job to me. I still find so much fun in that, but I’m there more for creating an authentic character that people can relate to,” she said.
Her performance in the 2024 film “Rosewell Delirium” netted her multiple Young Artist and Young Entertainer Awards, including awards for Best Actress at the Golden State, Yellowstone and Eastern Europe Film Festivals.
She’s even had the opportunity to meet Hollywood icons like Reese Witherspoon, Austin Butler and Robert Downing Jr., a meeting even she admits being starstruck by.
“I was literally at a loss for words when I met Robert Downey Jr. I don’t often get starstruck. That was a really cool experience for me,” she said. “It wasn’t even from working. It was at a baby shower.”
Her dream is to be cast on a TV series or in a film like “Divergent: or “Hunger Games”, or using her figure-skating skills to star in a skating series.
For now, she’s relishing the experiences and growth that come with each film or project, from roles in drama sci-fi all the way to heartwarming Christmas films like ‘A Chrismystery.”
“That’s what I love about my career so far, every role that I’ve done is completely different,” she said. “I think success has a different definition to everybody. For me, success means you’re in a stable place, but you’re also in a happy place. I’m in a happy place knowing that people are excited to see (A Chrismystery) and come out and watch it.”
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