CHRISTMAS IN CANAAN

Two young friends discover an unexpected and unshakeable bond as they grow from boyhood to manhood in the shadow of racism in southern Texas in the 1960s.

The rural Texas town of Canaan in the early 1960s is home to a pair of ten-year-old classmates. But the relationship between poor white farm boy DJ Burton and Rodney Freeman, a young black aspiring writer, is a contentious one. When their differences escalate into a fight, DJ’s widowed father, Daniel, and Rodney’s grandmother and guardian, Eunice, conspire not to punish the boys but to bring them together, forcing them to get along. At first guarded, the boys call a truce when they rescue a puppy, wounded and left for dead by DJ’s racist neighbour. In nurturing “Bandit,” DJ and Rodney also foster an unexpected new friendship.

When Eunice dies, Daniel takes Rodney in. Adjusting to DJ’s younger siblings isn’t easy, yet as Christmas arrives, this newly blended family realises that even in tough times they can at least give each other the gift of hope for the holidays. But life in Canaan is lived under the shadow of the Civil Rights movement and a racially charged atmosphere that threatens everything Rodney and Daniel and his family have been fighting for. Testing them even further is the arrival of Rodney’s estranged mother, who is now determined to reclaim her son. Whatever happens, all that has formed between them is a family bond that will never be broken.

Based on the cherished novel by Kenny Rogers and Donald Davenport, Christmas in Canaan is now an inspiring new film of friendship and family, and the bonds created during the magic of the holidays.