When filmmaker Deborah Riley Draper began work on her excellent, moving film, "Olympic Pride, American Prejudice" — about the 18 African-American athletes who braved Hitler's Germany to compete in the 1936 Olympics — it felt like the documentary could be a celebration. The athletes' grit and courage in the face of racism at home and overseas was a precursor to the grit and courage of leaders in the civil rights movement, opening the way for racial strides leading all the way to the election of Barack Obama as president of the United States.

The picture, of course, has changed.

"When I started this four years ago, I wouldn't have painted this picture of the political landscape in America," acknowledges Draper, whose film has achieved widespread acclaim and is nominated for an NAACP Image Award (in addition to being considered a Best Song contender in the Oscar race for its song, "Find My Victory"). "I think that the racial contentiousness and the uncertainty and the stress that our country is feeling now harkens back to 80 years ago, when we were split trying to decide whether we should go to Hitler's Germany coming out of the Depression. There was a huge racial divide...

"We were in the edit bay cutting this film and listening to the language that was coming out of Germany — and then going out and reading some of the newspapers about things being said as we headed into the election. We felt like, 'Wow, are we in time travel?'" she recalls. "When you read the stories, the similarities are so incredible. You think about the contentious relationships between African Americans and the police in 1936 — remember there were so many lynchings happening and so many of those were enabled by the local sheriff, by the local police. Jails were like, 'Sure, come and get them,' you know?" The erudite filmmaker pauses.

"There were lots of things that we had the opportunity to think about through the process of making this film. It was enlightening; it was stressful; it was a really dynamic experience."

History buffs are, of course, familiar with the story of the legendary Jesse Owens, track and field great who brought home four Olympic Gold Medals, much to Hitler's dismay. His teammates' stories are also compelling — including those of the team's two black women, one of whom, Louise Stokes, was just a high school kid of 18.

"Imagine going across the country, representing the country, suspending their own safety for the sake of our country. It's really remarkable to think about that," says Draper. "They had to be on a boat for 10 days, sailing to Germany, wondering 'What's going to be waiting for us? We can't be cowards. We're going to have to work together as a team.'"

Indeed.

So as things turned out, "Olympic Pride, American Prejudice" is inspiring audiences in a different way than Draper may originally have envisioned.

"I was able to see, doing this film, people who made decisions to love one another in spite of Jim Crow laws, in spite of Hitler, in spite of Aryan supremacy. People were able to suspend their hatred, cross racial divides and be friends, and that's what we need to learn from. If they could be friends back then, we ought to be able to be friends now."

She will have to wait to find out whether the film will win the Image Award (the ceremony takes place Feb. 11). She is aware that "We are in the company of four other really great films including 'I Am Not Your Negro.' It's a really hotly contested documentary category." But Draper has already won sweet victories. The film screened at the White House in September, and President Obama honored the athletes themselves. Narrated by Executive Producer Blair Underwood, "Olympic Pride, American Prejudice is now available via Amazon, YouTube and Google Play Movies and TV.