By Mabel Pais

DEAR SANTA

DIR: Dana Nachman l USA l 2020 l Doc/Family l 1h 24m

“DEAR SANTA,” from veteran documentarian and producer Dana Nachman. She is one of the great directors who are using their talents to tell inspiring stories in the face of the pandemic and economic downturn that have impacted so many families.

The film shines a light on the 100-year-old Operation Santa Program of the United States Postal Service. Each year, hundreds of thousands of letters to Santa arrive at Post Offices around the country. Through Operation Santa, the United States Postal Service makes it possible for the public to safely adopt these letters and make children’s dreams come true. The film invites audiences along for the magic of this massive endeavor. Traveling the country, much like Santa does on Christmas Eve, the film focuses on select Operation Santa centers: some in metropolitan areas like the massive operation in New York City and others in small towns where the post office is the heart of the community.

The film highlights letters where a child is asking for something poignant, something that goes beyond the common wish for a toy. Santa will explain how he enlists kind-hearted strangers across the country for these special requests while he concentrates on toy making and his demanding delivery schedule.

This timeless documentary captures the warmth and spirit of Christmastime through the lens of this great American tradition, provoking audiences throughout the world to ask themselves how they can make the world a better place, one gesture at a time.

Watch the trailer – youtu.be/0MhSPWfBbtE

For more information, visit www.dearsanta.movie

Release: On December 4 in Theaters Nationwide and on VOD including Amazon, Apple TV, YouTube Google Play, Vudu, XBox, XFinity, Spectrum & DirectTV. Visit – dearsanta.movie/watch-at-home

 SKY BLOSSOM: Diaries of The Next Greatest Generation

DIR: Richard Lui l USA l 2020 l Doc l 1h 20m

“I wanted to show caring for other people is still an honor. Young caregivers are also doing the most difficult, but for (the) family. This next greatest generation deserves all the effort we can muster.”

“I am one in three Americans who is touched by caring for an ailing loved one.  And I’m part of the half a trillion annual dollars in work me and 53 million others do for loved ones. A major part of this community is military caregivers. Military caregiver journeys start earlier and last longer than most.

“Diversity and inclusion remained part of the film’s DNA in front and behind the camera. I wanted to stay true to this both with the families that I chose and my crew. They also lose on average, almost $200,000 in wages over their lifetimes.” – Richard Lui, Director

“SKY BLOSSOM” is an Academy-Award-qualifying-film salute to 2020.  It is a raw, uplifting window into 24.5 million children and millennials stepping forward as frontline heroes.  Caring for the family with tough medical conditions, they stay at home doing things often seen only in hospitals.  They are cheerleaders, work part time, and go to college — but also live double lives — quietly growing up as America’s next greatest generation.

The filmmaker, veteran journalist and award-winning CNN/MSNBC news anchor Richard Lui says the interviews were so honest they genuinely surprised him, as they revealed insights into the lives of young people across America.  Troops used to look up and say, “Here come the Sky Blossoms” – paratroopers rushing to their aid.  Today, there is a new generation answering that call.  These are their stories.

My DARLING VIVIAN – Gives Voice to Johnny Cash’s First Wife

DIR: Matt Riddlehoover l USA l 2020 l Doc l 1h 30m

‘VARIETY’: OSCAR CONTENDER for BEST DOC FEATURE

In “MY DARLING VIVIAN,” director Matt Riddlehoover traces the romantic, wrenching, and dizzying journey of Vivian Liberto, Johnny Cash’s first wife and the mother of his four daughters, who was targeted by hate groups over her perceived race. “After their divorce, [the public] saw her as, I don’t know, as nothing,” daughter Rosanne Cash says in this touching, often heartbreaking, and revelatory film. “So, my mother faded into a kind of negative obscurity.”

“My Darling Vivian” has exclusive, unprecedented access to never-before-seen footage, photographs, and love letters, as well as to all four Cash daughters themselves. Rosanne Cash, Kathy Cash Tittle, Cindy Cash, and Tara Cash Schwoebel share first hand, and for the first time, their mother’s entire untold story.

Watch the trailer – youtu.be/3bjwGJOE5VM

Website: mydarlingvivian.com

Facebook: facebook.com/mydarlingvivian

Instagram: @mydarlingvivianfilm

Twitter: @mydarlingvivian

 KOKO-DI KOKO-DA

DIR: Johannes Nyholm l Sweden l 2020 l Swedish & Danish w/Eng subs l

Color l 1h 26m l NR

Elin and Tobias are a happily married couple who regularly vacation with their young daughter. The family is on a dreamy holiday when an innocuous case of food poisoning derails their plans and forever alters the course of their lives.

Three years later, the once loving couple is on the road again to go camping, looking for one last chance to go back to the way things used to be. But what once was is lost, and our characters instead find themselves having to relive the same nightmarish events, as that day and the horrors it brings repeat themselves infinitely. Together, they must overcome their trauma, reconcile with their past and fight for their lives. Over, and over, and over again.

Discerned through a dreamlike fabric, a story emerges about relationships in general, grief and reconciliation in particular, and love as a healing force.

Watch the trailer – youtu.be/TbOanKCcVWA

Vod Release: December 8 (US & Canada) Including: Apple TV/ iTunes, Amazon, Google Play, Xbox, Vudu, You Tube, Fandango Now, Dish Network and all major cable providers (Including: Comcast/Xfinity, Spectrum, Cox and Verizon Fios)

 18 TO PARTY

DIR: Jeff Roda l USA l 2019 l Eng l 1h 20m

It’s 1984 and outside a small-town nightclub, a group of 8th graders gather, grappling with a spate of recent suicides, UFO sightings, their absentee parents, and each other. 18 TO PARTY spans a single evening in the lives of these kids, but manages to transport us fully to a time when waiting for something to happen felt just as significant as the thing itself.

Gorgeously atmospheric, with a pulsating sense of anticipation that steadily builds, the film pulls us into the fears, wounds, and desires of each character, ultimately revealing that hope may arrive from the last place we expect.  The meticulously authentic production design, killer soundtrack, and universally excellent performances recall the spirit of classic 80s teen movies like Stand By Me and The Breakfast Club. 18 TO PARTY is a spot-on love letter to Gen X, awkward teenagers, and the transcendent power of friendship.

Watch the trailer – youtu.be/k3jqnEzuHWI

Website: https://www.18topartymovie.com

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/18ToPartyMovie

Twitter: https://twitter.com/18ToPartyMovie

Instagram: 18ToPartyMovie

@18ToPartyMovie

#18ToPartyMovie

VOD Release: Currently available on Apple TV, Prime Video, Google Play, Vudu, Fandango and more to follow.