Thanks for having me. This is crazy.

What a... what a journey. Yeah, it is crazy,

-because what-what a journey your life has been. -Yeah.

You know? Um, going from being an NFL wide receiver

to releasing a children's book

and a-a short film that is nominated for an Oscar.

-Congratulations. -Thank you, man.

-(cheers and applause) -Congratulations. -So crazy.

Let's, um... let's talk about the story and how it came to be,

because I remember when you... when you began this campaign.

-Yup. -You know, you've always been someone

-who is positive online. -Yeah.

Which is a rare thing, on Twitter, especially.

-And I remember when you started this project. -Yeah.

You said, "Hey, guys, I want to make a film

"about positivity, you know, when it comes to dads..."

-Yeah, yeah. -"...and their daughters and their hair

-and loving that hair, natural hair." -Yeah.

Why was that so important for you?

How did... how did that begin to be a seed in your mind?

Yeah, you know, I was coming across a lot

of these viral videos, and, um, and it just felt

like a really great opportunity, like you said,

to shine a spotlight on black fathers,

who so often get this negative portrayal in mainstream media,

uh, when studies have actually shown

that they're among the most involved groups

in their, um, kids' lives.

-Um... and that was one. -(applause and cheering)

Um, and then, also, you know, at the time, in 2017,

um, in the hundred-year plus history of film,

only three animated movies had featured black protagonists.

-Wow. -It was Bebe's Kids, Princess and the Frog and Home,

from DreamWorks, and so, it also felt

like a good opportunity to showcase a black family...

-Right. -...and to also try to normalize our hair.

You know, as you know, there are so many stories.

Every week, there's a new story of a young kid who's not able

to graduate because they have locks like mine.

-That was a big thing, yeah. -Yeah, so you know,

just wanted to normalize it and, um, just shine a spotlight

on these young kids that have pride

in their... how they look.

That has become one of the-the stories

-that we've been following recently. -Mm-hmm.

We've been seeing it more and more on the news

where a kid in school has been told,

-"Oh, they won't take your class picture." -Yup.

"You can't be in the class picture

-because of your hair." -Mm-hmm. Yup.

"That hairstyle is not appropriate." -Yup.

You know, "Dreadlocks are inappropriate

-for the office." -Right, right.

-Or cornrows or braids. -Right.

-Mm-hmm. -"These are all inappropriate

-for the office and school." -Yeah.

It was... it was a big part of my life, as well.

Did you feel that when you were transitioning?

-Because when you're in sports... -Yeah.

-...you know, you can have whatever hair you want. -Yeah.

People are like, "Yeah, you're a rock star,

-you can do what you..." -Exactly.

But when you move into, like, a more professional world,

was there ever a moment where you felt like

people looked at your hair and went like,

"Oh, man, we should, uh... we should tame that?"

No, I mean, definitely,

um, you know, you get the microaggressions,

-things like that. Um... -Right.

You know, people... Even when I...

You know, I went to certain schools, you know,

it would be the same thing.

But, you know, luckily, when you're in the creative arts,

-it's not so bad. -Right, right, right.

But, you know, I have a lot of co-workers and friends

who work in more corporate environments,

and they can't wear their hair a certain way,

-and it's just crazy. -It is sad, but it is changing.

-It is. -You know, for instance, we've seen in California,

they've now passed a law that protects people

-who have natural hair. -Mm-hmm. Yeah.

-You can't be discriminated against. -Yup.

You know, if you go to work, that's your hair, that is...

-Yeah. Mm-hmm. Yeah. -Yeah, it's really great.

-(applause and cheering) -For everybody. -Yup.

For everybody really.

And... and this-this story is really beautiful.

-It is... it is a short film... -Yup.

-...about a dad and this cute little girl. -Yup..

And as we saw in the little clip that we played,

-she needs to get her hair done. -Mm-hmm.

-And we don't understand why it's so important. -Yeah.

But she needs to get her hair done,

-and he is terrified of doing her hair. -Yes. Yes.

Why did you want to make this movie?

And what's more interesting to me is why did you choose

to make it the way you did,

asking people to help you make the movie?

Well, you know, for crowdfunding, um,

it's a really good way as a filmmaker to kind of

-build an audience before you go to market. -Uh-huh.

Um, with this story, I felt really confident

because I already kind of had this test data

with the viral videos.

Like, clearly, people already were into it.

And, um, yeah, you know, it was just something

that I had a really good feeling that would connect to audiences.

And, um, it just took off like crazy.

You know, our goal initially for the Kickstarter was $75,000.

We ended up raising almost $300,000

-in 30 days, which was wild. -Wow. Wow.

-(applause and cheering) -Um...

And, um, and, you know, while the story is obviously

very, uh, very unapologetically black,

it's also very universal, because it just speaks to...

You know, I think with kids, um, sometimes they ask you

to do stuff that you don't know how to do.

And if you love them, you're gonna figure it out,

and you're gonna step up, and that's really

-what the story represents. -Yeah, it really was

a moment of vulnerability, even in a funny way,

where a dad is going, "I don't know this world of girls..."

-Right. Yup. -"...but I'm going to step into it as a dad."

-Exactly. -And it's really been spurred on

-by-by what happened with Kobe Bryant. -Mm-hmm. Yes.

You know, we saw videos coming out

-of how much Kobe loved his daughters. -Yup. Yup.

How proud he was to be what he called "the girl dad."

-Yup. -You know, and-and how so many people have

-a negative connotation towards that. -Yup.

Kobe also shouted you out

-for the-the... this nomination. -Yeah. Mm-hmm.

-Because you were only, I think the second athlete... -Yeah.

...or former athlete to ever be nominated

-for an Oscar, and same category. -Yeah.

(applause and cheering)

-Do you think...? -So crazy.

Do you think looking at somebody like Kobe as a dad,

looking at conversations like this,

do you think that's something we need to encourage more...

is more dads to be... to see this as normal?

Exactly. Um, you know, that's the thing.

You know, we really wanted to represent

that kind of modern-day family.

Um, you know, as you guys know, rent is expensive everywhere.

-Mm-hmm. -And oftentimes now, both parents have to work.

And so, if mom has to go out of town

or if she has to go to work early,

-if you're a father, what are you gonna do? -Right.

You're gonna step up,

and you're gonna get your kids together, too.

And it shouldn't be an exception.

It's normal, and we wanted to try to help normalize that.

It was so cool. You know, playing with the kid's hair.

Playing with the hair. Like, we've grown up in a world

where for so long, it was like, "Oh, guys don't do...

-I'm a man. I don't do the hair." -Right. Right.

And it's like, "No, no, you're a man. You can do the hair."

-Exactly. Yup. -"And you can have fun doing the hair."

Thank you so much for being on the show.

Yeah, thank you, man. Appreciate it.

Really wonderful. I hope you win that Oscar.

-I hope you win that Oscar. -Fingers crossed.

Hair Love, the book, is available now,

and you can watch the short film

on Sony Animation's YouTube channel,

as well as in select theaters, with Jumanji: The Next Level.

Matthew A. Cherry, everybody!