'American Factory' and 'Becoming' are Emmy nominees!
Barack and Michelle Obama are in the Emmys race! When the nominees for the 2020 Emmy Awards were announced on Tuesday, the former first couple's production company, Higher Ground Productions, found itself recognized seven times.
The production company received the nominations for two documentary projects, American Factory and Becoming. The former, a look at a Chinese company's factory in Ohio, nabbed nominations for cinematography, directing and picture editing, while the latter, a documentary covering the former first lady's life and work, was recognized in the cinematography, directing, music composition and outstanding documentary categories.
"The opportunity to share the story of Michelle Obama, the first Black First Lady, is bigger than anything I could have dreamed," Nadia Hallgren, Director & Cinematographer of Becoming, said in a statement. "Releasing Becoming during this particular moment in history added an unexpected and an even deeper meaning to it all. Thank you to the Television Academy for this recognition, and thank you to our collaborators at Higher Ground Productions and Netflix. Our team is honored to receive this very special nomination!"
Tonia Davis and Priya Swaminathan, the co-heads of Higher Ground Productions, added that they are "so proud" of both the film and its director.
"[It's] a film about Michelle Obama's belief in the power of sharing our stories and connecting with each other," they said in a statement. "Thank you to the Television Academy for this honor and to Netflix for believing in Higher Ground's vision to make work grounded in empathy, connection and community."
The Emmy nominations come after American Factory was awarded the Oscar for Best Documentary Feature at the 92nd Annual Academy Awards in February. At the time, the former president celebrated the filmmakers for "telling such a complex, moving story," while Michelle tweeted that she was "so glad to see their heart and honesty recognized."
Watch the video below for more on the Obamas.
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