HallmarkDB
    MoviesPeopleGuidesChatWatch Talking Hallmark on YouTube
    1. Home
    2. People
    3. Ilona Smyth
    Ilona Smyth headshot

    Ilona Smyth

    Casting Director,casting Department,director·Active 2018–2024
    View on IMDbView on TMDB

    Career at a glance

    14Hallmark films

    8 at Christmas

    Audience rating6.2 / 10

    across 14 rated films

    Weirdness3.9 / 10

    Mostly standard issue

    Best reviewed

    Family History Mysteries: Buried Past6.8

    Most recent

    True Justice: Family Ties2024

    Everything Ilona has done for Hallmark, from A Christmas for the Books (2018) right through to True Justice: Family Ties (2024).

    Follow & about Ilona

    • Instagram@smythcasting
    • Official sitesmythcasting.com

    Ilona’s signature

    Across 14 films, Ilona usually leans into Christmas and is usually set in small towns.

    • Christmas8 films
    • small towns7 films
    • a doctor2 films
    • second-chance romance6 films
    • a return home5 films
    • a supernatural twist3 films

    11 hours

    11 hours of Hallmark Christmas movies, and counting.

    Adds up across 8 festive titles.

    Known for

    Double Holiday poster
    Double Holiday6.8

    Casting Director · 2019

    Weirdness 5/10

    Unlocking Christmas poster
    Unlocking Christmas6.4

    Casting Director · 2020

    Weirdness 2/10

    Boyfriends of Christmas Past poster
    Boyfriends of Christmas Past6.0

    Casting Director · 2021

    Weirdness 6/10

    A Christmas Carousel poster
    A Christmas Carousel6.1

    Casting Director · 2020

    Weirdness 6/10

    Christmas CEO poster
    Christmas CEO5.7

    Casting Director · 2021

    Weirdness 7/10

    Twas the Night Before Christmas poster
    Twas the Night Before Christmas6.7

    Casting Director · 2022

    Weirdness 7/10

    On-screen partners

    Amanda Martínez headshot
    Frequent co-star

    Ilona’s most frequent on-screen partner is Amanda Martínez, with 2 films together.

    • Two for the Win (2021)·
    • Christmas CEO (2021)
    • Barbara Eve Harris2
    • Chad Connell2
    • Jennie Esnard2
    • Jennifer De Lucia2
    • Judah Katz2

    Where Ilona fits in

    The corners of the Hallmark universe Ilona keeps turning up in. Each one is a full ranked guide.

    • ❄️Winter movies
    • 🎄Christmas movies
    • ⭐Best Christmas movies
    • 🏘️Small-town movies
    • 🔄Second-chance romance
    • 🧁Baking & cooking movies

    All 14 movies

    Newest first

    2020s

    12 films
    • 2024True Justice: Family TiesCasting Director · Big City6.4Weird 3/10
    • 2023An Ice Palace RomanceCasting Director · Christmas5.8Weird 2/10
    • 2023Family History Mysteries: Buried PastCasting Director · Small Town6.8Weird 3/10
    • 2023Never Too Late to CelebrateCasting Director · Suburb6.6Weird 2/10
    • 2023Welcome to ValentineCasting Director · Valentine's Day5.6Weird 3/10
    • 2022Holiday HeritageCasting Director · Christmas5.9Weird 3/10
    • 2022Twas the Night Before ChristmasCasting Director · Christmas6.7Weird 7/10
    • 2021Boyfriends of Christmas PastCasting Director · Christmas6.0Weird 6/10
    • 2021Christmas CEOCasting Director · Christmas5.7Weird 7/10
    • 2021Two for the WinCasting Director · Small Town6.4Weird 3/10
    • 2020A Christmas CarouselCasting Director · Christmas6.1Weird 6/10
    • 2020Unlocking ChristmasCasting Director · Christmas6.4Weird 2/10

    2010s

    2 films
    • 2019Double HolidayCasting Director · Christmas6.8Weird 5/10
    • 2018A Christmas for the BooksCasting Director · Holiday5.2Weird 3/10

    Ilona’s standouts

    • Family History Mysteries: Buried Past poster
      Highest ratedFamily History Mysteries: Buried Past (2023)

      Best-reviewed of the 14, at 6.8/10

      6.8
    • A Christmas for the Books poster
      Most divisiveA Christmas for the Books (2018)

      Lowest-rated of the 14 — every filmography has one

      5.2
    • Twas the Night Before Christmas poster
      WeirdestTwas the Night Before Christmas (2022)

      The strangest of the bunch — 7/10 on our weirdness scale

      6.7

    In pictures

    A quick look at Ilona’s Hallmark run — headshot and the posters fans know best.

    • Ilona Smyth headshotIlona Smyth
    • True Justice: Family Ties poster
    • An Ice Palace Romance poster
    • Family History Mysteries: Buried Past poster
    • Never Too Late to Celebrate poster
    • Welcome to Valentine poster
    • Holiday Heritage poster
    • Twas the Night Before Christmas poster
    • Boyfriends of Christmas Past poster
    • Christmas CEO poster
    • Two for the Win poster
    • A Christmas Carousel poster
    • Unlocking Christmas poster

    Ilona’s creative circle

    Most directed by

    • Don McBrearty3 films
    • Jonathan Wright3 films

    Most written by

    • Nina Weinman2 films

    Who Ilona works with

    The cast and crew Ilona keeps ending up on set with — the regular faces you’ll recognise from one film to the next. Bigger circle, more films together.

    Ilona Smyth's most frequent co-stars, sized by shared filmsShane Boucher: 13 films togetherShane Boucher13 filmsCaitlin Delaney: 5 films togetherCaitlin Delaney5 filmsChristopher Guglick: 5 films togetherChristopher Gug…5 filmsMichael Galbraith: 4 films togetherMichael Galbrai…4 filmsMichael Richard Plowman: 4 films togetherMichael Richard…4 filmsDon McBrearty: 3 films togetherDon McBrearty3 filmsGarren Dunbar: 3 films togetherGarren Dunbar3 films

    Movies by year

    Ilona Smyth Hallmark movies by release year12018120192202032021220224202312024

    Ratings profile

    Average 6.2 across 14 rated movies — each dot is one film.

    Rating distribution for this filmography1510mean 6.2A Christmas for the Books: 5.2Welcome to Valentine: 5.6Christmas CEO: 5.7An Ice Palace Romance: 5.8Holiday Heritage: 5.9Boyfriends of Christmas Past: 6.0A Christmas Carousel: 6.1True Justice: Family Ties: 6.4Two for the Win: 6.4Unlocking Christmas: 6.4Never Too Late to Celebrate: 6.6Twas the Night Before Christmas: 6.7Family History Mysteries: Buried Past: 6.8Double Holiday: 6.8

    People also ask

    How many Hallmark movies has Ilona Smyth been in?
    We have 14 Hallmark movies on file for Ilona Smyth, spanning 2018–2024.
    What kind of Hallmark movies is Ilona Smyth known for?
    Ilona is best known for Christmas movies and romances set in small towns, often with second-chance romance.
    What is Ilona Smyth's highest-rated Hallmark movie?
    Family History Mysteries: Buried Past (2023) is Ilona's best-reviewed Hallmark film, with a 6.8/10 audience rating.
    What is Ilona Smyth's most popular Hallmark movie?
    Double Holiday (2019) has more audience votes than any other Ilona Smyth Hallmark film, so it's the one most people have actually seen.
    Who does Ilona Smyth usually star with?
    Ilona has shared 2 films with Amanda Martínez, their most frequent Hallmark co-star.
    Is Ilona Smyth still making Hallmark movies?
    The newest Ilona Hallmark credit we have is from 2024; nothing later has turned up yet.
    How many Hallmark Christmas movies has Ilona Smyth made?
    Ilona Smyth turns up in 8 Hallmark Christmas movies.
    What was Ilona Smyth's first Hallmark movie?
    The earliest Ilona Hallmark title we have is A Christmas for the Books (2018).
    What does Ilona Smyth do in Hallmark movies?
    Ilona Smyth works on Hallmark films as casting director,casting department,director.

    Data & sources

    Ilona’s filmography, credits and ratings are compiled from IMDb and TMDB, then checked and tidied by the Talking Hallmark team. Last updated June 2026.

    Catalogue curated by Alanna of Talking Hallmark. About the project

    Talking Hallmark

    Love talking about these as much as watching them?

    So do we. Come hang out on the Talking Hallmark channel, where we dig into movies just like this one, episode after episode.

    Watch the latest episode
    I watched Hallmark’s WORST Christmas movie (so you don’t have to)

    “I watched Hallmark’s WORST Christmas movie (so you don’t have to)”

    HallmarkDB

    The complete Hallmark movie database. Built to surface the unusual ones, as the research desk for the Talking Hallmark YouTube channel.

    Curated by Alanna of Talking Hallmark.

    Explore

    • Movies
    • People
    • Database
    • Guides
    • Chat
    • About

    Browse

    • Christmas Movies
    • Most Unusual
    • Hidden Gems
    • Royal Romance
    • Time Travel
    • Small Town Stories

    Talking Hallmark

    • Watch on YouTube
    • Christmas Guide
    • Unusual Movies Guide
    © 2026 HallmarkDBAn independent fan project, not affiliated with Hallmark Media.