After her promotion, Toliver assisted Cherry as a side project, and arranged for the film to be shown in theaters ahead of "The Angry Birds Movie 2". In an interview with WBEZ she stated, "I've been in animation for many years and have never been able to work on something so personal to me and about the black family that ... hasn't really been represented in animation." Toliver stated that her own mother had lupus during Toliver's high school years and lost her hair as a result of the illness. Toliver received a 2020 Oscar for Best Animated Short Film for "Hair Love", shared with Matthew A. Cherry, becoming the first African-American woman to win in that category.