UR alumna co-produces holiday TV movie

For most of us, the warm feeling of the holidays has faded away, but for one University of Richmond 2005 alumna, "The Most Wonderful Time of the Year" still feels good.

Alumna Caroline Moore co-produced a made-for-TV holiday movie, "The Most Wonderful Time of The Year," which aired on the Hallmark channel Dec. 13.

Moore was an English major with minors in both Spanish and theater at Richmond. When she began school, Moore had little idea of what career path she wanted to pursue, and she remained unsure as she came closer to graduation.

Her creativity and writing skills led her to take a course on Latin American cinema with professor Claudia Ferman. It was then that she discovered her passion for film.

"Latin American cinema tends to be extremely political," Moore said, "and I understood for the first time the potential of film to change the way people think, which excited me."

With this newfound love, she and two other students completed an independent study with Ferman, assessing movies for the Latin American Studies Association Film Festival, which Ferman directed.

"I knew that she had an interesting mind, and I appreciated her originality," Ferman said in discussing her first impressions of Moore. "I think that this experience was very important to her. She was a challenging student whom I loved to have."

Because Richmond is not known as a film school and Moore hadn't taken any courses related to television broadcasting or production, Moore said she believed she became best qualified to work in her industry through self-education.

"I've found that many people in the film and television industry have studied something other than film -- English, philosophy, business, psychology -- but they all have been drawn to the industry as film lovers," she said.

Immediately after graduation, Moore landed an internship with Dan Wigutow Productions, which she had found through the Career Development Center's Web site. The internship consisted of long hours, many weekends and little pay, but it eventually turned into full-time employment.

"I just had a feeling about her," said Dan Wigutow, Moore's co-producer. "When I saw some of her writing, I didn't believe she was as young as she claimed to be because she had great maturity. I said, 'Wow, she must be at least 30.'"

Dan Wigutow Productions, a New York-based company that produced "The Most Wonderful Time of the Year," is small enough that Moore had the opportunity to be involved in each aspect of filmmaking, including development, on-set production and even post-production.

"To me," Moore said, "producing is the best job in the industry because you get to dip your toes in everything: the writing, the casting, the business side of things, the editing and the music."

She added that though it is fulfilling to make a movie, it is also a grueling and tedious process because it is so multifaceted.

"But at the end of all of that, you have a tangible product that hopefully you can say you're proud of, and that's extremely gratifying," she said.

"The Most Wonderful Time of the Year" is a romantic comedy about a single mom, played by Brooke Burns, who rediscovers the true meaning of Christmas after her uncle, played by Henry Winkler, invites a hippie drifter he meets in the airport home for the holidays. Moore said screenwriter Bruce Graham's great sense of humor and big heart made the script exceptionally down-to-earth, allowing audiences to connect with the main characters.

"Of course, almost all holiday films follow a certain formula, but it's a formula that works," she said. "Most of us want to see something heartwarming, sweet, romantic and light around the holidays."

Moore said working with a pop culture icon such as Henry Winkler had been awe-inspiring at times because his reputation for being the nicest man in Hollywood held true. Wigutow said having her on the set had also helped smooth the production process because all of the actors really trusted her opinion.

Moore's first film, "The Two Mr. Kissels," starred John Stamos. She said her first movie would always be the most special to her because she said the final result was one of the classiest films ever to air on Lifetime.

Wigutow and Moore have other productions in the works, including another Hallmark film based on Debbie Macomber's best-selling book "Mrs. Miracle." Moore said they were also developing a science fiction television series in collaboration with Sony Pictures Television and a Lifetime adaptation of a James Patterson novel. There are plans for an ABC Family romantic comedy as well.

"For a small company, we've got quite a bit going on," Moore said.

Moore said she was 100 percent satisfied to be involved with something that ended up being shared with a larger audience.

Still, she attributed much of her success not only to luck and timing, but also to what she learned at Richmond.

"English literature was the best major, and it's been enormously helpful to me in my job," she said. "Knowing how to write well, how to tell a story, what makes a story good, what makes good characters; these are all key elements to understand in producing."

For Wigutow, it was that combined with Moore's thoughtful and insightful personality that showed him she was capable of taking on such a tough field.

"It's rare for me to find someone who just gets it so well, especially at such a young age," Wigutow said. "She fits in so smoothly to the whole process and makes such an enormous contribution. I would love to keep doing that with her."

Moore stressed she was grateful to have a job where she was not only constantly challenged, but also loved what she was doing when there were always hundreds of other young, smart hard workers looking for the same thing.

"I always try to remember that I'm not entitled to anything," she said. "You should never underestimate the value of a positive, enthusiastic attitude."

Contact staff writer Allie Artur at allie.artur@richmond.edu