Hair Love: An award-winning short film from Matthew A. Cherry

We’re committed to celebrating natural hair, for everyone. That’s why in 2017, we funded a kickstarter for American filmmaker Matthew A. Cherry’s animated short film, Hair Love. The film follows a father’s attempt to do his daughter’s hair for an extra-special occasion. Cherry's vision was to highlight the importance of hair love and self-esteem, while celebrating the relationship between fathers and daughters everywhere.

Dove and Matthew A. Cherry share a mission. To create a world where natural hair is a source of confidence in young people. In less than seven minutes, the short film brings awareness to hair diversity and illustrates how defining hair can be on the path to self-love.

Three years later, Hair Love won an Academy Award for Best Animated Short Film.

The film tells the story of Zuri, who wants to create the perfect hairstyle on a very special day. Her initial attempts to style her coily hair don’t go as planned, so her dad steps in. Together they embark on a journey as they both learn how to style her naturally textured hair and create the style that she desires. This gives Zuri and her dad a boost of confidence in their hair styling.

These heartwarming messages are relatable for kids, especially when expressed through the vibrant illustrations of kids’ hair styles. It also helps to inspire parents and guardians who are wondering how to embrace styling naturally textured hair.

We know kids pick up on things they see and hear, so it’s important that they see themselves and their hair styles represented in animation, just like the Hair Love film.

Not only are we championing hair representation and the celebration of Black hair, we’re also working to create a world where children’s natural hair is recognized and embraced. We co-founded The CROWN Coalition in 2019 to advocate for the passing of The CROWN Act. This legislation demands protection against race-based hair discrimination in the workplace and in schools based on hair texture and protective styles. Together with National Urban League, Color of Change and the Western Center on Law and Poverty, we’re committed to progressing The CROWN Act until hair discrimination is illegal in all 50 states.

Join us to confront this issue head-on with our new educational tool, My Hair, My Crown, for young people, created by The Dove Self-Esteem Project to build kids’ self-confidence with informational guides. Download the session now and join us in making a difference to young people everywhere. Together, we can help end race-based hair discrimination for the next generation.