Backstage pass: Barack Obama's election

If Amy Rice and Alicia Sams were looking for a challenge, they might have set their sights on something probable -- like lifting the pope's hat. Instead, they waged a campaign to secure behind-the-scenes footage of Barack Obama's presidential campaign. Their improbable victory resulted in "By the People: The Election of Barack Obama," an eye-opening documentary premiering Tuesday on HBO that allows viewers a rare backstage pass, one coveted by political journalists.

How they secured -- and held onto -- the golden ticket is almost as remarkable as the tale itself.

It started with Sept. 11, 2001.

Rice, who previously toiled as a camera operator and cinematographer, lost a brother in that tragedy and was inspired to do something on the subject of patriotism. Impressed by Obama's keynote address at the 2004 Democratic convention, she decided to focus on his first term as an Illinois senator. Oscar nominee Edward Norton was taken with the idea and signed on as an executive producer.

"We really initially proposed it as kind of a regular check-in, a political diary, if you want to call it that," Norton said. "At the time he wasn't a candidate. They weren't trying to insulate him. They were, in some sense, trying to raise his profile and they were much more open to receiving that kind of interest. In that sense, we were lucky to start forming the relationship with them before it became a much more guarded affair."

When the underdog won the Iowa caucus, the project got a lot more interesting -- and a lot more difficult.

"They didn't want us to shoot anymore," said Rice, referring primarily to chief campaign manager David Plouffe and chief strategist David Axelrod, veterans trained not to let any outsiders get a glance behind the curtain.

"Axelrod in particular was vehemently opposed to anything because he's very savvy, and he was probably right," Norton said. "They didn't need to make themselves vulnerable to that. I think it's a testament to Amy and Alicia's tenaciousness that they kind of wore him down."

It's also a reminder of just how much it means to have a movie star in your corner. Norton personally reached out to Obama, who was convinced that the filmmakers were documenting an important slice of history, whether he won or not.

In other ways, though, Obama made it tough. Whether in victory or defeat, he never lets loose with a "Real Housewives" moment of unrestrained emotion, something directors will wait endless hours to capture.

"He was always so calm, even calmer than I think we see him on TV," Rice said. "That's actually great for a president, but it's really hard when you're making a documentary. You want a little bit of drama."

There is one remarkable exception, and it serves as the film's buried treasure. Just before boarding a plane to attend his grandmother's funeral, Obama gave a short speech in the middle of the night about what she had meant to him. Rice happened to be right up front and was positioned at such an angle that she was able to film a single tear trickling down his cheek.

"I went back on the press bus afterwards and thought everyone would be talking about it. Obama cried," she said. "But nobody was talking about it. They were too far back."

Obama's dramatic turns may be few and far between, but the documentary focuses just as much on satellite characters, ones who aren't afraid to show some emotion. Most notably, they filmed an exasperated 9-year-old struggling to make cold calls to potential primary voters who have never heard of an "Obama."

Then there's Ronnie Cho, a Des Moines organizer who rose from relative poverty (he spent a year of his childhood living out of the family car) to become a major player in the campaign. His tears of joy at the end of the campaign will leave even the most ardent John McCain supporters a bit misty-eyed.

Those players are so captivating that at least one critic suggested the filmmakers show more of them.

On Jan. 28, the last day of shooting, Sams and Rice were setting up their cameras in the Oval Office and asked the president what he thought of the finished product.

Obama raved and added that he was particularly moved by Cho.

"I really think you should put more of them in it and less of me," he told the women.

When told of the president's review, Cho, now assistant director of legislative affairs at the Department of Homeland Security, reflected for a moment.

"Well," Cho quipped, "he plays kind of an important role in this whole thing."

njustin@startribune.com • 612-673-7431