Long Grove stars in three Christmas movies, thanks to small-town feel and state tax credit

When filmmaker and Mundelein resident John W. Bosher first read the script for “Christmas With Felicity,” the quaint, small-town setting made picking a filming location easy.

“All of these sets are already right down the street in Long Grove,” he thought.

The suburb’s historic and picturesque sites — coupled with the state’s film tax incentive — lured Bosher back for two additional Christmas movies: “Reporting for Christmas” on Hulu and the still-filming “Christmas on the Ranch.”

Bosher and his producing partner Chris Charles have utilized the tax credit in all three Christmas movies, he said. But even before the series, they were big proponents of the bill.

“In fact,” Bosher said, “then Gov. Rod Blagojevich signed an iteration of the tax credit on one of our sets in 2008.”

In the years since, they’ve seen the state draw a number of films and television shows, including Dick Wolf’s “Chicago Fire,” “Chicago P.D.” and “Chicago Med.”

“I would say most independent films here, the tax credit is an integral part of how we’re able to get these things off the ground,” Bosher said.

But Long Grove has its own attractions, he said. And moviemaking in the village has a longer history than people might imagine.

In “The Blues Brothers,” released in 1980, the Bluesmobile cruises past the building formerly known as the Peppermint Stick, at 410 Robert Coffin Road.

The village has in many ways turned into Bosher’s back lot, one reason being that it is, in a sense, in his backyard. For the past 10 years, his wife, Jessica, has run In Motion Dance studio near the historic Village Tavern. And young dancers from the studio appeared in “Christmas With Felicity,” initially released in 2021 on AMC+.

Bosher is now wrapping work on “Christmas on the Ranch,” about a talk radio personality whose show revolves around relationships but who has never found her Mr. Right. The village doubles for a small town in Ohio.

Bosher said the village has been increasingly supportive of the producers’ efforts. The process includes filling out a special events permit application and giving a presentation to the village board.

The village even expedited its normal repair process, Bosher said, when the town’s iconic covered bridge was hit days before he was scheduled to film there.

“In addition to providing the perfect backdrop for an idyllic small town, Long Grove has championed our efforts,” Charles said. “Everyone has supported us, from the village managers and business owners to the residents. We're thrilled to give back by helping put Long Grove on the map for other productions and hopefully tourists who want to see for themselves what makes the town so special.”

For the village’s part, the films help Long Grove as it looks to rebrand.

“It’s helping showcase all the work that’s gone into revitalizing the downtown,” Ryan Messner, president of the Historic Downtown Long Grove Business Association, said.

“It all shows us in a nice light,” Long Grove Village President Bill Jacob said. “They’re nice, clean wholesome movies.”