Letters to Santa
A documentary by Kaleb Yates

Short Synopsis:
Letters to Santa is a documentary with the running time of a PBS half an hour (26 min. 40 sec.). It’s shot in wide screen (16×9) HDV format. “Letters to Santa” is a light-hearted, inspirational look at the people that keep the spirit of Christmas alive by writing back to those who have written letters to Santa Claus. Interviews of North Pole town’s folk are interlaced with vintage video clips from a variety of quirky sources.

Full Synopsis:
Every year hundreds of thousands of people write letters to Santa Claus and slip them in their mail boxes. Especially around December, post offices around the world are bombarded by letters to Ol’ St. Nick. But where do they go? What does a postman do with a letter to a mythological character? “Letters to Santa” explores these questions and the people responsible for keeping the Spirit of Christmas alive.

Nestled deep in the heart of the Alaskan interior, just twelve miles South of Fairbanks, is the small town of North Pole. North Pole was originally given its name in order to incite toy manufacturers to build factories there. The toy factories never came, but North Pole kept its name. As a result, the town became a popular stop for thousands of annual tourists.

In order to keep the tourists coming, the town of North Pole is decorated in a Christmas theme year round. There are Christmas decorations everywhere! The street lights are made to look like candy canes. The streets have names such as “Santa Claus Lane” and ”Snowman Lane.” There is even a world famous Santa Claus House with a giant Statue of Santa Claus in front with live reindeer out back.

If you were ever to write a letter to Santa, chances are North Pole, Alaska is where it would be sent. In fact, the North Pole Post Office receives over eight hundred thousand Santa Claus letters a year. Some letters are addressed to “Santa at the North Pole,” some just to “Santa,” and some make it without even a postage stamp. Letters come from around the globe.

While most Santa letters are written by children asking for their most desired Christmas gifts, Santa letters often contain a variety of other subject matters and are sent by a wide array of individuals. “Santa” receives Valentine cards in February. Some letters are from adults that just want to express themselves. Some letters contain confessions of bad deeds. Some letters are just bizarre.

The North Pole Post Office collects the hundreds of thousands of letters to Santa and turns them over to charitable organizations that attempt to respond to as many letters as possible. At North Pole Middle School, for example, students in English classes pretend to be Santa’s Elves by replying to children’s letters.