Barack Obama’s Journey From U.S. President To Emmy-Winning Hollywood Star

In the clip posted to former President Barack Obama’s X account, he and his wife, Michelle Obama, talk about how they’ve focused their efforts on sharing meaningful, impactful stories since leaving the White House. Barack said, “We want to be in relationships with people and connect with them and work together with them. People trust us with their story, and that’s a huge responsibility, but we feel so lucky.”

The first project released by Higher Ground was a documentary called “American Factory,” which received an Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature, among other impressive accolades. The production company also released story-focused documentaries like “Crip Camp” (2020), “Becoming” (2020), “Descendant” (2022), and “American Symphony” (November 2023). Two of Higher Ground’s productions, “Our Great National Parks” and “Working: What We Do All Day,” saw Barack Obama take a more forward-facing approach as a narrator.

The former president’s role in these documentary series would garner Barack two Emmy Awards for Best Narration, making him the first U.S. president to win a competitive award from the Television Academy. (The only other president to win an Emmy was former President Dwight D. Eisenhower, who won the Primetime Emmy Governors Award in 1956.)