Animated short ‘Hair Love’ is giving us all the feels

Former NFL wide receiver turned writer and film director brought his hit children’s book to life a now we are wondering what life was like before!

Matthew A. Cherry announced on Twitter Wednesday morning that his animated short “Hair Love,” which was named after his children’s book, was now available free online after airing in theaters this summer before Angry Birds 2.

#HairLove is live! It’s an animated short film about an African American father learning how to do his daughters hair for the first time. Written & Directed by me, co-directed by @BruceAlmighteee @Mr_Scribbles & stars @IssaRae. @SonyAnimation #HairLove pic.twitter.com/RRlh2Ncol1

— Matthew A. Cherry (@MatthewACherry) December 5, 2019

The six-minute short, which was also made in part by Sony Pictures Animation, took viewers into the home of little Zuri, who wants her hair to look like her mom’s, who was voiced by Insecure‘s Issa Rae. When Zuri tried to follow one of her mother’s hair tutorials.

“Wasn’t that easy?” Her mother said at the end of the video.

It proved to be a lot more complicated than she anticipated.

When Zuri’s father, who has locs, walks into the bathroom to see what his daughter had done to her hair, he goes into panic mode. When he suggested a hat, his daughter was not having it and pointed to the picture of the style she wanted. Her dad dubiously picked up the comb and tried to comb it through her hair, but her hair took it from him and a charming fight began in a boxing ring. It was Zuri’s hair vs. her father.

When the fight was over, Zuri’s father placed a hat on her head, which brought her to tears and had her storming out. After locking herself in the bathroom, Zuri showed her dad a video of her mother, which helped give him the courage to go on this journey with her. After following her mother’s instructions step by step, Zuri’s father accomplished the intricate style she wanted.

And if the viewer is not already tearing up, the end of the short film will definitely have you reaching for a tissue.

“I wanted to see a young black family in the animated world,” Cherry, who is not a father himself, told the New York Times.

According to Today, Cherry raised more than $284,000 on Kickstarter to put this short film together. Slashfilms.com also reported that “Hair Love” broke Disney and Pixar’s iron grip on the Best Animated Feature category at the Oscars, and next year, they’re making a strong bid for the Best Animated Shorts category as well.