From 'Hair Love' to 'Young Love': A Black family's animated TV tale

By Danielle Broadway and Eric Cox

Sept 12 (Reuters) - When director and writer Matthew A. Cherry started a crowdsourced fund in 2017 for his animated short film "Hair Love," he could not have imagined it would go on to win an Oscar in 2020 and eventually grow into the 2023 Max series "Young Love."

As the series creator, he was keen to continue the story of the family in "Young Love," which premieres on Sept. 21 and runs for 12 episodes.

"The kind of relatability of the world even created in the short with no dialogue is very much a continuation of what we tried to present in the series," Cherry told Reuters.

"Hair Love" unpacks the story of a Black father named Stephen trying to do his seven-year-old daughter Zuri's hair for the first time while his wife Angela is in the hospital receiving chemotherapy for cancer.

Angela, a professional hairstylist voiced by "Insecure" actor Issa Rae, created hair tutorials for YouTube, which Zuri and her dad, voiced by Cherry, watch.

Eventually, Zuri's dad masters the hairstyles after studying the videos.

"Young Love" picks up after Angela's return home from treatment, exploring the life of the multigenerational family in Chicago, where Cherry grew up.

Besides Rae reprising her role as Angela, other notable names in the voice cast are Loretta Devine, Sheryl Lee Ralph and Kid Cudi.

"We got the multigenerational family too, we added the grandparents played by Loretta Devine and Henry Lennix. And, you know, obviously Zuri got a voice now, and Stephen is Cudi," Cherry said.

"So, we really hope it's something for everybody, every generation we try to represent."

For him, creating more representation in animation and beyond has always been a defining goal.

"The best art is when you can tie it to a real cause," he said.

"Young Love" is another chapter in the short film's expansion. "Hair Love" has already been adapted into a New York Times bestselling book, the Dove Kids Hair Love collection and used as a pillar in the passing of the CROWN Act, a bill that aims to end hair discrimination in the United States. (Reporting by Danielle Broadway in Los Angeles and Eric Cox in Chicago; Editing by Mary Milliken and Aurora Ellis)