"To understand Romney, you have to understand Joseph Smith," Christing said. The man who told the world he saw God, talked with angels, translated gold plates and organized the LDS Church is so complex a character that chronicling his life alone has consumed years for many who have tried to paint a balanced picture. "He accomplished more in 14 years than people normally do in 50 years of career," Christing said.

Smith's daring has spurred the filmmaker to examine not only the church founder's short-lived political career, but also the events that have made him a center of controversy for more than 150 years.

Christing's crew recently retraced steps from the forced 1838 Mormon evacuation from Missouri to Nauvoo, Ill., where Smith announced his campaign for the White House and was murdered shortly thereafter.

Romney was a way to look both at Smith and the faith that he and Romney share in the arena of partisan politics, which has historically been wary of deep religious conviction.

Will the film help or hurt Romney's campaign?

Christing said he doesn't know, but he's impressed with Romney's sincerity. "Many have called him a flip-flopper. ... I think (he's) real. I think he would be a shoo-in as the Republican candidate if not for the fact that he is Mormon. In one way that's sad to me, and in another way it's so interesting. He could be Baptist or Lutheran or Jewish and it wouldn't be such a big deal."

After having interviewed people all across the country, Christing said he's convinced there is "still anti-Mormon feeling in America. It's very easy to find people who feel that way."

Geography wasn't the issue, he said, noting he didn't find that particular areas of the country are more heavily saturated with negative sentiment toward the LDS Church. "A person's perspective on their own faith was kind of the key card," he said. He added that "most people have never heard of Joseph Smith," though in many ways, "he was the most important Latter-day Saint of all time. But even a lot of Mormons don't know he ran for president."

Though Americans may not generally know Smith's story, most know the LDS Church has a connection to polygamy, though they don't know exactly what role it played in the faith or whether it's still being practiced, he said.

Media coverage of convicted felon Warren Jeffs, leader of the Fundamentalist LDS Church and its polygamist lifestyle, has many people still guessing, though top LDS leaders have repeatedly emphasized that the Salt Lake-based church disavowed polygamy more than a century ago.

The film depicts re-enactments of several key events in Smith's life, including a scene where Emma Smith learns that God has commanded her husband to enter into plural marriage, Christing said. The scenes help set the stage for how the "Mormon factor" impacts Romney's candidacy, he said.