Deaf Santa Claus

Charles Graves was always a believer. When other children mocked the idea of Santa Claus, he clung to it, determined that there must be a little magic somewhere in the world. He had a tough childhood, often finding himself sidelined or excluded because he was Deaf, so that mattered. one day, he got to meet his hero – but Santa’s big bushy beard and unkempt moustache obscured his lips, so Charles couldn’t understand a thing he said.

Wouldn’t it be great, he thought later, if there were a Deaf Santa Claus?

Ben Shelton and Anthony Mowl’s documentary, which premièred at the Austin Film Festival in October, follows a much older Charles as he endeavours to realise his dream. Suitably rounded and with an all natural bushy white beard of his own, he has realised that although he can’t change the past, he might be able to do something for a new generation of Deaf and hard-of-hearing kids. There are two parts to his journey. Firstly, he connects with a photographer and marketer (who is hearing but, with Deaf parents, wife and child, understands much of what’s at stake), who is determined to make him a star. Secondly, he attends the International University of Santa Claus, working hard to acquire the skills that will enable him to honour Father Christmas’ legacy.

The image of Santa Claus as it’s popularly known today was fixed sometime around the 1930s, but in recent years it has begun to fluctuate again. Most of the men at ‘Santa school’, as it is affectionately know, look very similar, though they don’t all have natural beards. Still, we meet a Black Santa, who discusses the importance of giving children Father Christmas figures they can relate to. Santa speaks many different languages, he point out, so why shouldn’t he communicate in sign? When he describes him as a shapeshifter you may feel a little shudder, a reminder of less wholesome predecessors of the present day figure, but it’s also a reminder that he’s a magical creature and magic shouldn’t be bound too tightly to convention.

That doesn’t mean that there aren’t rules. The university is keen to make sure that every Santa understands the significance of the role and the responsibility that comes with it. its graduates need to be trustworthy and to put children’s needs before anything else. Charles has had problems with alcohol in the past and, his daughter Kalei intimates, was not always there when needed, but he has made an effort to turn his life around, and it’s evident that there is a lot of love in his family today. He’s supported by his wife Kari, who is happy to stand in as Mrs Klaus when needed. We learn a little about their life together, and also meet Kalei’s partner, another hearing person who has integrated himself into the Deaf community, although, as he explains through her laughter, he draws the line at Kaleigh doing the hoovering in the middle of the night.

There’s a surprising amount of learning to be done in the process of becoming Santa. One has to get the smile right, adopt a certain set of mannerisms and – they insist – be able to deliver a suitable “Ho, ho, ho!” – which isn’t easy for Charles, who tends to speak in quite a high register, having never heard his own voice or acquired the social baggage that leads most men to use only the lower part of their range. He also needs to develop an in-depth knowledge of what children see as cool, and keep it up to date, so that he can talk with them about their Christmas wishes.

but will anybody want to talk to Charles? Despite the marketer’s efforts, rejection after rejection suggests that institutions are just not ready to take on a Deaf Santa Claus, and one wonders if this is going to be one of those documentaries whose initial premise fizzles out. It’s certainly a window into prejudice and the gulf between what people will smile at and what they’ll commit to. Is he merely a token presence on his agency’s register? You’ll have to watch to find out. You will, however, get to see at least one Deaf child light up in his presence, and that’s the stuff that Christmas magic is made of.