Takaya Honda, Lily Brown and Haiha Le in The Gift That Gives.

The Gift That Gives, the fourth romantic comedy by Joy House Productions, will celebrate its Australian theatrical release this month.

Written and directed by Joy Hopwood, The Gift That Gives stars Takaya Honda (Neighbours), HaiHa Le (Packed to The Rafters), Lily Brown Griffiths (The Script of Life), Damien Sato (Rhapsody of Love), Susan Ling Young (The Office), Genevieve Craig (Chickas), Athrav Kolhatkar (The Marriage Agency), Maria Tran (The Last King of the Cross), Andy Trieu (SBS Pop Asia), and Lex Marinos (Mother & Son, Kingswood Country).

The Gift That Gives follows the story of Callum Mori, the author of a book entitled The Gift That Gives. He makes his first television appearance as a guest on The Arts Corner television show, presented by Kate Sedgeman, who falls for him. However, Callum falls for her best friend, Linda. Linda owns the bookshop where Callum launches his book, but luckily for Kate, fate brings her and Callum’s brother, Austin, together as they discover hidden love letters signed by aliases. Jointly, they all try to find out who penned them.

“I was attracted to this film because it is an interesting blend of a rom-com and a whodunit with rich and diverse characters. The script has some interesting twists and turns that don’t get caught in rom-com clichés,” says Takaya Honda, who plays Callum Mori.

“I love the spirit in which this film is being made; it takes a lot of courage and tenacity to set out to make a film, and I wanted to be part of the ride. It also has a warm and positive message which I hope will resonate with audiences,” Hai Ha Le added.

Marinos commended Hopwood on the universal themes she explored within the script. Human emotions like love, hope, and happiness are universal; they don’t belong to any one section of society,” he said. “Working with a diverse cast and crew is very much what contemporary Australia feels like to me.”

This film will start the year 2024 with a bang, giving us hope in the true Australian indie spirit and will be one of Australia’s feel-good movies of the year; after watching, audiences will discover what life’s gift that gives truly is.

Joy Hopwood’s previous films, Get a Life, Alright, Rhapsody of Love, and The Script of Life, have all been successfully licensed to the Nine Network, Paramount Plus, Hulu, and Amazon Prime.

“I’m proud that all my films champion diversity in front of and behind the camera. The Gift That Gives is a feel-good romantic comedy that we hope everyone will enjoy and will start 2024 with a bang!” says Joy.

The Gift That Gives will screen Sunday 14th January 2024 at Parramatta Riverside 3.30pm followed by a Q & A with additional screenings until the 27th January, Cinema Nova on Saturday the 3rd February (Melbourne) and finishing at Randwick Ritz on the 4th February 2024.