Produced and co-directed by Albert, a Canadian citizen, Welcome to the World has been picked up for distribution by the Canadian Filmmakers Distribution Centre (CFMDC). The listing for Welcome to the World on CFMDC’s website can be viewed here.

Welcome to the World is a daring film about a troubled man who records a video message for his pregnant sister. Drawing its power and immediacy from its first-person, confessional style, the film presents, in one continuous shot, the journey of one man’s awakening from isolation back to humanity. The film stars Albert and is directed by Albert and Anthony Grasso.

Richard Propes (The Independent Critic) gives it four stars and writes, “RIVETING… CHAN’S PERFORMANCE IS DEEPLY MOVING… LINGERS IN YOUR BRAIN LONG AFTER THE CLOSING CREDITS”. Kirk Fernwood (One Film Fan) praises the film as “INTELLIGENT, INVENTIVE, AND INSPIRED… CHAN DOES A FANTASTIC JOB… DRAWING YOU IN WITH EVERY WORD… THE FINALE IS A STROKE OF CREATIVE BRILLIANCE AND ARTISTRY”. Max White (OC Movie Reviews) raves, “CHAN GIVES A GRIPPING, HEARTFELT AND SINCERE PERFORMANCE WHICH PLUNGES YOU INTO THE MURKY WATERS OF MODERN HUMANITY AND MASCULINITY… SQUEEZES SO MUCH RAW EMOTION INTO A SINGLE SHOT”. And Rachel Pullen (UK Film Review) writes, “LEADING MAN ALBERT M. CHAN… PLAYS AN EMOTIONALLY RAW MAN WITH A GRACE AND EASE THAT IS OFTEN ONLY SEEN WITHIN SOME OF THE MOST HIGH END ACTORS… PACKS A HUGE PUNCH… TO CREATE SUCH AN IMPACT ON A VIEWER IN ONLY SEVEN MINUTES WITH JUST ONE MAN, A SCRIPT AND A CAMERA CERTAINLY SPEAKS VOLUMES OF THE SKILLS THAT CHAN HAS AS A DIRECTOR, WRITER AND PERFORMER”.

Established in 1967, CFMDC is a not-for-profit, artist-run centre that has since grown and evolved into a world-renowned distributor of independent media art. CFMDC serves as an ambassador for Canadian artists and their work, creating distribution networks and opportunities at the local, national and international levels. The centre honours the collective history of avant-garde art film, while playing a key-role in determining a more contemporary definition of distribution in the digital milieu. Now in our 50th year, with 3700+ films in their catalogue by over 1000 members, CFMDC is one of the most enduring, respected, forward thinking, and engaged, distribution centres in Canada. CFMDC is supported in part by the Canada Council for the Arts, the Ontario Arts Council, and the Toronto Arts Council.