Local actor’s Christmas Wish comes true

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This article was published 10/12/2020 (1512 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Averie Peters and her parents plan to watch their favourite Christmas movies this year, but they’re also adding a new movie with a familiar face — Averie’s.

The 10-year-old is starring in Hallmark’s Project Christmas Wish, which premières on the W Network throughout Canada on Dec. 26. Averie is playing the role of Max, a little girl who wishes for a Christmas like it used to be.

The movie marks Averie’s first speaking role, but she’s been a background performer in two previous Hallmark movies.

“As parents we’re beyond proud of Averie,” says Kelly Gillson, Averie’s mother. “From the first day on set she was eager to be a part of this movie and learn from everyone around her… it was incredible as a parent to sit back and watch her be confident, in character and able to take direction from the director.”

Averie said she is excited to see herself on television, but she is also going to be her toughest critic.

“I think it’s going to be pretty cool,” she said. “I think I’m going to have a feeling like, ‘I could have done that better. I could have done this better.’ But I am really excited to see it.”

Mike Peters, Averie’s father, says it was nice watching co-stars Amanda Schull, known for her role as Katrina Bennett in the television series Suits, and Travis Van Winkle take Averie under their wing throughout filming.

“They’re professionals in what they do, and Averie was able to learn from that,” Mike says. “She really developed a bond with Travis. He really helped her get comfortable by joking around, singing and stuff like that.”

The movie’s producer says Averie fit in with the rest of the cast and was a “natural” on set during her three weeks of filming.

“She was just a total professional and you would never know that she hadn’t done this before,” Ian Dimerman says.

“This is a wonderful example of showcasing all the talent that exists here in Manitoba. The one thing COVID has done, given how hard it is to bring actors in from outside of Canada, it’s really given actors here a chance to shine.”

The film came at the right time for Averie, as she had two stage roles cancelled because of COVID-19 — including her role as a munchkin in Rainbow Stage’s The Wizard of Oz.

“Rainbow Stage just holds a special spot in Averie’s life,” Mike says. “Her, her mom and her grandma go every year to see a production. Just to finally make it to that stage, which was so pivotal to her growing-up experience and seeing musical theatre there, I think it was really special for her to land that role. To have it be cancelled due to COVID was pretty disappointing, but it was sort of a silver lining for her to book this movie role.”

Averie said she had a great experience on set and plans to pursue a career in acting.

“You get to get into character, learn different lines, live an imaginary life. You get to work with a lot of different people, and I just like going to an imaginary room and performing like it’s your normal life,” she says.

kellen.taniguchi@freepress.mb.ca