Millions of people will see Disney's latest family-friendly film after it premiers Monday night in Washington, D.C., but it will never bust box-office records.
That's because Disney's seven-minute, feel-good Welcome: Portraits of America will play for foreign visitors to the USA as they wait for visa processing at consular offices around the globe or in the foreign-flight arrival areas of U.S. airports.
The purpose: to counteract the image abroad of post-9/11 America as hostile for foreign visitors. Some 43 million foreigners apply for a U.S. visa or go through customs each year.
Disney, long active in lobbying efforts for more welcoming treatment of foreign visitors, made the film at no cost to the government. Like others in the U.S. tourism industry, Disney has expressed concern about the USA's declining share of international travelers.
That's because Disney's seven-minute, feel-good Welcome: Portraits of America will play for foreign visitors to the USA as they wait for visa processing at consular offices around the globe or in the foreign-flight arrival areas of U.S. airports.
The purpose: to counteract the image abroad of post-9/11 America as hostile for foreign visitors. Some 43 million foreigners apply for a U.S. visa or go through customs each year.
Disney, long active in lobbying efforts for more welcoming treatment of foreign visitors, made the film at no cost to the government. Like others in the U.S. tourism industry, Disney has expressed concern about the USA's declining share of international travelers.
http://www.discoveramerica.com/
Article Source: USA Today
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