Kevin D. Kinsey

Hidden Figures is an American biographical drama film directed by Theodore Melfi and written by Melfi and Allison Schroeder, based on the non-fiction book of the sane name by Margot Lee Shetterly which is about female African-American mathematicians at NASA.

The film stars Taraji P. Henson as Katherine G. Johnson, a mathematician who calculated flight trajectories for Project Mercury and other missions. The film also features Octavia Spencer as Dorthy Vaughan and Janelle Monae as Mary Jackson, with Kevin Costner and Mahershala Ali in supporting roles.

The incredible untold story of Katherine G. Johnson, Dorothy Vaughan and Mary Jackson – brilliant African-American women working at NASA, who served as the brains behind one of the greatest operations in history: the launch of astronaut John Glenn into orbit, a stunning achievement that restored the nation’s confidence, turned around the Space Race, and galvanized the world. The visionary trio crossed all gender and race lines to inspire generations to dream big.

Hidden Figures has been recognized in industry conversation about diversity and inclusion, representation and new and different stories. The depiction of the film follows black women who preformed calculations at NASA’s Langley Research Center in Virginia leading up to John Glenn’s orbit around the Earth is outstanding and exceptional work of achievement for women of color.  This amazing film has garnered nominations for Best Picture in addition to Octavia Spencer being nominated for Best Actress in a Supporting Role for portraying pioneering programmer Dorothy Vaughan. The film also scored a nomination for Best Adapted Screenplay based on a the historical narrative book by Shetterly that celebrates the contributions of some of those workers.

As America stood on the brink of a Second World War, the push for aeronautical advancement grew ever greater, spurring an insatiable demand for mathematicians. Women were the solution. Ushered into the Langley Memorial Aeronautical Laboratory in 1935 to shoulder the burden of number crunching, they acted as human computers, freeing the engineers of hand calculations in the decades before the digital age. Sharp and successful, the female population at Langley skyrocketed.

Many of these “computers” are finally getting their due, but conspicuously missing from this story of female achievement are the efforts contributed by courageous, African-American women. Called the West Computers, after the area to which they were relegated, they helped blaze a trail for mathematicians and engineers of all races and genders to follow.

“These women were both ordinary and they were extraordinary,” says Margot Lee Shetterly. Her new book Hidden Figures shines light on the inner details of these women’s lives and accomplishments. The film starring Octavia Spencer and Taraji P. Henson, is now open in theaters.