Production Underway for Hallmark's Movies & Mysteries THE CHRISTMAS SHEPHERD, Starring Teri Polo

Hallmark Movies & Mysteries announces that production begins August 5th in Vancouver on "The Christmas Shepherd," a Hallmark Movies & Mysteries Original starring Teri Polo ("The Fosters," "The Christmas Heart") and Martin Cummins ("Dark Angel," "When Calls the Heart"), which premieres on the network this Holiday season. "The Christmas Shepherd" is a Shepherd Road Production. Executive producer is Gerald W. Abrams and Allen Lewis. Harvey Kahn is producer. Terry Ingram will direct from a script by Michael J. Murray. "The Christmas Shepherd" is part of Hallmark Movies & Mysteries' Most Wonderful Movies of Christmas, featuring traditional and classic Christmas films suitable for family audiences.

"Teri Polo is a brilliant actress who lights up the screen and we are delighted to have her as part of our Hallmark family and back celebrating another holiday season with us," said Michelle Vicary, Executive Vice President, Programming, Crown Media Family Networks.

In "The Christmas Shepherd," Sally Browing (Polo), a Children's book author and illustrator is devastated when her beloved German Shepherd, Buddy, runs away during a thunderstorm. Buddy miraculously ends up in Boston with Mark Green (Cummins) and his teenage daughter. They are struggling to put their lives back together after losing his wife and her mother three years ago. Buddy wins their hearts and heals their souls just in time for the holidays. Sally's journey to find Buddy eventually connects her to Mark and Emma, and everyone is given the best Christmas present possible, the gift of love.

Recently rebranded from Hallmark Movie Channel, Hallmark Movies & Mysteries is a 24-hour digital cable network featuring a unique mix of original movies and acquired series focused on the lighter side of the suspense and mystery genres. The network is also home to annual holiday programming franchise, the Most Wonderful Movies of Christmas, as well as presentations from the award-winning Hallmark Hall of Fame library. One of television's leading destinations for compelling family-friendly entertainment, Hallmark Movies & Mysteries can be seen in 54 million homes in SD (Standard Definition) and HD (High Definition) and remains one of the fastest-growing networks in cable. Along with sister network, Hallmark Channel, Hallmark Movies & Mysteries is the second linear channel from Crown Media Holdings, Inc.

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