I Am Santa Claus

The documentary follows real-bearded professional Santas as they get ready for the busiest stretch of the year. These are the men children are photographed with in shopping centres; out of the red suit they are divorced, out of work, in debt or alone. The film moves into the lives of five of them and shows the pressure they carry to keep anyone from damaging the reputation of the suit. The best-known face is Mick Foley, who has left wrestling and is trying to learn the job. The most interesting part is that the work turns out to be a closed world with its own rules: conventions, courses, beard maintenance, a community that polices itself. The most candid stretch belongs to one of the men who is gay and is working out how to carry that alongside the Santa identity. Tommy Avallone neither mocks them nor sets out to protect them; he just shows the men under the red suit.