U of Montana Prof’s Christmas Movie to Air on Oprah Network

He knew at a very young age that he wanted to make movies. It was just that, "I'm a little surprised I'm making Christmas movies."

That's the mini-summation of University of Montana Media Arts adjunct professor and Missoula native Tobin Addington, who is celebrating the holiday season in a big way, having his movie screenplay premiering on the network of one of the most iconic celebrities ever. And we can hang our TVs by the chimney with care and take in the big debut this Saturday night.

UM News Service tells us that Tobin's screenplay, "24-Karat Christmas," will premiere on the Oprah Winfrey Network this Saturday, December 21, at 7:00 p.m. Mountain Time. He regularly turns in screenplays for Christmas movies brought to life by OWN.

Growing up in Missoula, he says that when his childhood projects outgrew his family’s cumbersome video camera, he turned to Missoula Community Access Television to borrow their equipment and editing facilities. It was at a time and place where he didn't know anyone who wrote movies. 

Writing Christmas movies is somewhat of a departure for Professor Addington, as he typically writes more in the mystery, thriller and horror genres. But he respects the "formula." As he told UM News Service, “That puzzle is really interesting to me, with Christmas movies, since they do have a formula that they follow. So figuring out how to play within that and make it different enough that it will be interesting is the trick of those movies.” 

“24-Karat Christmas” tells the story of when an unlucky-in-love jewelry designer accidentally sends wedding bands off with the wrong customer, and she joins forces with the charming best man to track them down for a Christmas Eve wedding. And it's fair to say that  even though romance is often an element, the Oprah Network "is more interested in things like family and tradition and ambition, balancing people’s career aspirations with the rest of their lives.” He says that makes OWN movies different from many others.

And he adds this cool note, paying tribute to his roots: “It’s funny, for me the Christmas movies I write, in my mind, they’re all set in Montana. Even though they are deliberately set in the suburbs of large places, in my mind I’m picturing downtown Missoula.”  

Congratulations to Tobin Addington! Looking forward to checking it out Saturday night.