HOLLYWOOD, CALIFORNIA - FEBRUARY 09: Director Matthew A. Cherry and producer Karen Rupert Toliver, winners of the Animated Short Film award for “Hair Love,” pose in the press room during the 92nd Annual Academy Awards at Hollywood and Highland on February 09, 2020 in Hollywood, California.
Former NFL wide receiver Matthew Cherry won an Oscar for his animated short Hair Love, which he wrote and directed, as well as produced with partner Karen Rupert Toliver.
Hair Love is a seven-minute animated short about an African American father’s attempt to do his daughter’s hair for the first time.
In his acceptance speech, Cherry said of the film, “Hair Love was done because we wanted to see more representation in animation, and we wanted to normalize black hair.”
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Cherry, 38, played football for the University of Akron before spending a three season career in the NFL on various teams before leaving in 2007. He would move to Los Angeles after to pursue his dream of working in Hollywood.
At the end of his speech, he dedicated the award to Kobe Bryant who won an Oscar for his animated short Dear Basketball in 2018.
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