An enterprising Santa Claus has provided himself the mission of saving Christmas in Spain by sending video messages to kids who are unable to meet the man himself this year due to the fact of the coronavirus pandemic.
“We thought of doing Zoom, Skype and using new technologies since Santa cannot visit the children’s homes,” mentioned Hector Fuentes, decked out in the classic red suit, white beard and hat of Father Christmas, or “Papa Noel” in Spanish.
Children’s entertainer Fuentes, a Chilean who has been living in Spain for the previous decade, has transformed an old shipping container in Leganes, south of Madrid, into a grotto-cum-production studio.
He records personalised messages with the assist of his son Andres, who operates behind the camera, and his colleague Pilar Carrion, who plays his trusty sidekick elf.
Parents can uncover Fuentes on social media and send him their children’s letters. Then he and Carrion film a personalised reply from Papa Noel himself.
“When the pandemic arrived all the events we had were cancelled…we had to start from scratch to reinvent ourselves,” mentioned Carrion.
On Friday, 3-year-old Arhoa Pena sat transfixed as she watched Santa Claus speaking to her from the tv in her living space in Alcorcon.
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