Reasons Behind The Obamas' Venture Into Film With Their Production Company

In May 2018, Barack and Michelle Obama established their production company, Higher Ground Productions, in collaboration with Netflix. The venture aimed to amplify diverse voices in the entertainment industry and stemmed from the Obamas' passion for impactful storytelling, believing in its potential to foster understanding among audiences.

Initially focused on educational and uplifting content, the company has diversified its portfolio, recently releasing the apocalyptic psychological thriller ‘Leave the World Behind.’ The Obamas' production company continues to evolve, driven by a commitment to meaningful storytelling and expanding its influence across genres.

Since the launch of Higher Ground Productions by Barack and Michelle Obama in 2018, the couple has been credited as executive producers on all projects, except for the documentary ‘Becoming’ (2020), based on Michelle Obama's memoir, where they are credited as producers. 

While the Obamas delegated the day-to-day operations to seasoned Hollywood professionals, they maintained a supervisory role, offering story notes and recommending projects, especially books, for acquisition and development. 

Their unique perspective, shaped by eight years in the White House over two presidential terms, adds a distinctive worldview to their productions. This perspective was particularly relevant to their recent release, the apocalyptic thriller ‘Leave the World Behind,’ exploring the reactions of a diverse group to a cataclysmic event leading to the collapse of technology.

Apart from recommending the 2020 novel for the film adaptation, Barack Obama guided the cast, including Ethan Hawke and Mahershala Ali, and director Sam Esmail in depicting the government's response to the crisis portrayed in ‘Leave the World Behind.’ Esmail emphasized in an interview that Obama, being a movie enthusiast, focused on engagingly capturing the book's essence. 

Obama's notes centred on character development, empathy and the portrayal of disaster elements, aligning with the cautionary themes about community and bonds explored in the narrative.

Barack and Michelle Obama's ties to Hollywood date back to his 2007-2008 presidential campaign, forging close connections with Hollywood elites like Tom Hanks and Steven Spielberg. Inspired by these relationships, the Obamas aimed to collaborate creatively with their Hollywood friends through Higher Ground Productions. 

Despite their popularity, the production company, responsible for four feature films, focuses on meaningful storytelling rather than serving as a vanity project. Notably, their documentary ‘American Factory’ (2019) earned Higher Ground its first Academy Award, narrating the challenges of a Chinese billionaire's venture into an Ohio factory. The company received a second Oscar nomination for the 2020 documentary ‘Crip Camp: A Disability Revolution.’

Barack and Michelle Obama's Higher Ground Productions is gearing up for a significant expansion in film and television with the 2023 releases of ‘Leave the World Behind’ and ‘Rustin.’ The company has acquired the rights to the bestselling crime novel ‘All the Sinners Bleed,’ set to be produced as a film adaptation in collaboration with Steven Spielberg's Amblin Entertainment. 

Another project in the pipeline is a biographical film about Frederick Douglass, with Regina Hall set to direct. Additionally, the company is in pre-production for ‘Exit West,’ a fantasy film based on Barack Obama's 2017 favourite novel, depicting a love story amid a global migration caused by a supernatural phenomenon. Witness the Obamas' diverse productions on Netflix.

– Farheen Ali