The Obamas and Netflix Just Announced the Series and Films They’re Working On

The Obamas and Netflix just announced the first slate of series and films being produced for the by Higher Ground Productions for the streaming service.

The former president and first lady launched Higher Ground Productions last year, and they expect to make even more project announcements in the coming months, Netflix said in a press release.

Mr. Obama said Higher Ground was created to “harness the power of storytelling,” and the projects they chose have a purpose:

“Touching on issues of race and class, democracy and civil rights, and much more, we believe each of these productions won’t just entertain, but will educate, connect, and inspire us all,” he said in the statement.

Mrs. Obama said the productions have something for everyone. “We love this slate because it spans so many different interests and experiences, yet it’s all woven together with stories that are relevant to our daily lives,” the former first lady said.

Here’s a look at what they have in the works:

1 – “American Factory” – The film takes a deep dive into a post-industrial Ohio, where a Chinese billionaire opens a new factory in the husk of an abandoned General Motors plant and hires two thousand blue-collar Americans.

2 – “Bloom” – It is a post-WWII film about barriers faced by women and by people of color in an era marked by hurdles but also tremendous progress.

3 – “Frederick Douglass: Prophet of Freedom _”_ – The book by David W. Blight earned the 2019 Pulitzer Prize in History.

4 – “Overlooked” series – The New York Times’ obituary column “Overlooked” tells “stories of remarkable people – including many women and minorities – whose accomplishments and lives did not get the recognition they deserved in their own time.

5 – “Listen to Your Vegetables and Eat Your Parents” – The half-hour show geared toward pre-school-age kids travels the globe to show viewers the story of food.

6 – “Fifth Risk” – It is a non-fiction series based on “The Fifth Risk: Undoing Democracy,” a book by best-selling author Michael Lewis (“The Big Short,” “Moneyball”).

7 – “Crip Camp” – This feature-length documentary looks at a summer camp for disabled teenagers near Woodstock. In 1970s, the camp would transform young lives, and America forever by helping to set in motion the disability rights movement.