Plot summary

Canada, our friendly neighbors to the North, who welcomed 27,000 refugees (just 6,000 fewer than America) in 2017 alone, despite having a tenth of the U.S. population. Many of the refugees came from Syria and Iraq, and their journeys to safety were physically and mentally taxing. To tell the story of their experience, Academy Award®-winning director Barbara Kopple uses a unique and creative setting: summer camp. Located on a small island in the Canadian wilderness, Camp Pathfinder has given boys from Canada and the U.S. a place to belong for over a century. A few years ago, its director—saddened and disturbed by what he was seeing in the news—decided to give refugees the opportunity to attend the camp. Kopple’s film chronicles their stay, beautifully capturing the bonds of new friendship. But not all the boys are able to escape the mindset of war. Through the eyes of these youngsters, NEW HOMELAND documents the highs and lows of starting over.