Obamas' Netflix slate features period drama, family show about vegetables

Barack and Michelle Obama's Production Company on Tuesday unveiled a wide-ranging slate of programming it will supply to Netflix Inc, including a period drama set in the fashion world and a biopic about Frederick Douglass.

The series, documentaries and films will be released on the streaming service over the next several years, according to a statement from Higher Ground Productions, a company established by the former president and first lady last year.

The slate includes a drama called "Bloom," a series set in the post-World War II fashion world in New York City, which explores barriers faced by women and people of colour. It will be written and produced by Oscar-winning "Thelma and Louise" screenwriter Callie Khouri.

A series for preschoolers called "Listen to Your Vegetables & Eat Your Parents" will "take children and their families around the globe on an adventure that tells us the story of our food," the statement said. During her time as first lady, Michelle Obama advocated for healthy eating habits for children.

Another project is a non-fiction series based on Michael Lewis book "The Fifth Risk: Undoing Democracy" about "the unheralded work done by everyday heroes guiding our government and safeguarding our nation." The Lewis book was critical of the US administration's transition from Obama to US President Donald Trump.

The company also is adapting Pulitzer Prize-winning book "Frederick Douglass: Prophet of Freedom" by David W. Blight about the celebrated abolitionist.

"We believe each of these productions won't just entertain, but will educate, connect and inspire us all," Obama said in the statement.

The former US first lady has also been promoting her memoir globally and speaking up for women's rights and girls' education. Obama, who grew up in a working class household in Chicago, said she wanted to empower women to seek hope in a difficult political and social climate.

Last month, the book's German publisher said 'Becoming' could become the biggest-selling autobiography ever.

"It's absolutely surreal. I think it's like a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. I can't believe she's in England as well, I can't believe we're going," said Aisha Chipampe, a 26-year-old corporate finance worker who had driven four hours from the northern city of Leeds for Obama's recent London show.

Obama's book tour has so far taken her across North America and Scandinavia. After London, she had Paris and Amsterdam on the schedule.

Obama, asked by host Stephen Colbert what advice she had for people in Britain about how to stay calm in a time of turmoil - a likely reference to political divisions over Brexit - said London was unique and should treasure its diversity.

"This trepidation, the anxiety, it's everywhere, it's all over the world," she said.

"I was looking out over the city, London, a beautiful city, and the thing I love about it is it is truly representative of true international diversity.