DVD Recommendation Hidden Figures Starring Taraji P Henson The award winning film Hidden Figures , directed and co-written by Theodore Melfi, is a fact based drama about the struggles of well educated African American females who worked for NASA during the Space Race. The film is based on a book, of the same name, by Margot Lee Shetterly, and centers around a trio of strong women who endured despite being held back due to their skin color and gender. Each of the three principal characters, Katherine Johnson (Taraji P. Henson), Mary Jackson (Janelle Monae) and Dorothy Vaughan (Octavia Spencer), has a chance to shine as their unique stories unfold. Katherine Johnson works as a "computer" in a segregated section of NASA and receives a promotion to the Space Task Group after the Russians successfully launch astronauts into space. The United States is falling behind their Soviet counterparts and pressure is placed on the leader of the group, Al Harrison (Kevin Costner), to catch u...