Welcome: Portraits of America also features an eclectic mix of people: Midwestern farmers, a surfer, American Indian children, a street musician, a hospital nurse holding a newborn baby, a rancher on horseback, Mardi Gras revelers in New Orleans, a Las Vegas showgirl, an Elvis Presley impersonator and more.

Tio said the people he met while filming were often as remarkable as the landscape.  They were, for the most part, very receptive to the idea of appearing in the film, “although a few required a little persuasion,” he said.

He recalled two people in the film whose personal histories captured his imagination because they embody the immigrant’s dream of succeeding in America.  One is Rafael Rodriguez -- shown examining grapes in a California vineyard -- who was born in Mexico.  He “emigrated to this country and has worked the same piece of land in Napa [Valley] for years,” said Tio.

The other is Salva Dut, one of the so-called “lost boys” from southern Sudan, who is shown standing in front of a house, surrounded by fellow Sudanese immigrants.  Dut fled his war-ravaged homeland at age 11 and arrived in the United States under the sponsorship of a U.S. church group.  Now 31 years old and a U.S. citizen, he created an organization called Water for Sudan that drills wells to provide safe drinking water for the people of his native country.  Dut credits his U.S. education with “making it all possible,” said Tio.  “He learned about hydrology when he came to this country.”

Tio, who emigrated from Cuba at age 3, said his own naturalization ceremony was deeply important to him.  “I became a U.S. citizen at 17,” he said.  “I felt very patriotic.”

His travels across the United States to film Portraits of America served to reignite his patriotism, Tio added.  “We drove 14,888 miles [almost 24,000 kilometers] all across America,” he said.  “I’m so impressed with the people we met along the way.  With these ‘portraits,’ we were aiming to capture the extraordinary aspects of ordinary people.”

He plans to take his wife and children on an abridged version of that marathon road trip so they can experience the same sense of wonder he did.  If visitors from overseas watch his film and feel motivated to discover America for themselves, then the project can be judged a success, he said.

“I hope that when people make the decision to come to this country, they’re happy to be here,” he said.  “Going though customs at the airport can be stressful, but maybe seeing these images will make the process a little more pleasant.  Besides, there is so much variety in the United States -- from the grandeur of our canyons to the vigor of our cities.  You get to choose from that menu when you come here.”