Hot Frosty is a Christmas romcom movie that debuted in 2024 and shot to the top of the Netflix charts. It stars Lacey Chabert as a widow who magically brings a sexy snowman to life. The snowman is played by Dustin Milligan, of Schitt’s Creek fame. The movie also stars Craig Robinson (from The Office), Katy Mixon (from American Housewife), Joe Lo Truglio, and Lauren Holly.
The movie takes place in the fictional town of Hope Springs, New York. To film the holiday movie, locations in and around Ottawa, Canada were used.
Kathy’s House
Kathy’s house has been in a state of disrepair since her husband died. Of course, Jack quickly fixes the roof and stairs. He also transforms the house with the Christmas decorations he finds in the basement.
The house depicted in the movie is located in Almonte, which is about 45 minutes west of Ottawa. This quaint little town is well know for it’s historic buildings and cute houses, making it a popular area for filming Christmas movies. It’s not uncommon to see areas covered in snow in the middle of summer. I visited the house just before Christmas, so there was real snow on the ground.
In addition to Kathy’s house, we also get a brief glimpse at the houses next door. We also see the house across the street, when a local resident needs assistance with her car.
Hope Springs School
Jack gets a job doing maintenance at a local school. He also chaperons the school dance, where he brings Kathy as his date. Both exteriors and interiors of the school were filmed at Century Public School, a now-closed school located in Ottawa’s west end.
Menswear Shop
When Kathy takes Jack shopping for some fancy clothes, they visit a menswear store. These scenes were filmed at the Ottawa location of Surmesur, a chain with locations across Canada, the US, and Mexico. The shop is located inside the Place de Ville office complex.
As luck would have it, my friend Todd works at the store in Ottawa. I went to visit the store and take some photos. Todd explained that the production rented the whole store and spent a couple days filming. A lot of the clothing and mannequins seen in the background are actual products available in the store. If you want to recreate Jack’s shopping trip, head down to Surmesur and see Todd or one of his colleagues.
City Stairs
While shopping, Kathy and Jack are seen coming down some stairs in a shopping area, and then Jack gets into a snowball fight with some kids. These scenes were filmed in downtown Ottawa, next to the reStays Hotel.
Downtown Hope Springs
Hot Frosty scenes in downtown Hope Springs were filmed in the town of Brockville, about an hour away from Ottawa. This picturesque town has an historic downtown area surrounding the Brockville Court House. This area was transformed into a wintertime scene, with fake snow on the ground and covering the trees and roofs. The area was also decorated as the Hope Springs Snow Sculpture Competition, where Kathy brings Jack to life.
I have been to Brockville many times over the years, but I haven’t had the chance to take photos of the area featured in Hot Frosty yet. I will hopefully have the chance to visit soon, and I’ll update this page with photos once I do.
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