Inspired by an upcoming IP of young-adult graphic novels
Curlfriends is an elevated, animated series about 4 young, black girls navigating their friendship and school life while venturing into the world of early teenage-hood.
This time is rife with comedy, drama and new experiences, from crushes, to body changes, to in-crowds and out-crowds, discovering new insecurities and establishing identity.
We’ll see these universal dilemmas through the eyes of young black girls. The audience, no matter their background, will find themselves flashing back to their own middle school struggles, as wonderful or as humiliating as they remember them to be.
*book art
FUNNY
STUBBORN
INSECURE
INTELLIGENT
STRONG
TIMID
GOOFY
ARROGANT
"Black women can be strong, but they can be weird, different and complicated, too." - God
Charlie Harper is shy and is often and observer, as she’s never lived in any one place long enough to grow roots. An only child, her dad recently retired from the air force, and while he was active she lived in Alaska, Germany, Singapore and India. As a traveler of the world, she has an international, eclectic taste. Her interests include manga and music.
OUR CHARACTERS
Nola Parker is an outgoing, honor roll student with a bubbling personality and trendy eye for the latest style. She’s a people person that always wants her friends to have a good time. She lives with her single mom who owns a hair salon called Carol’s Curls.
Cara Wilson is a fun, goofy track star. She has a laid back style, cares little about clothes or fashion and her favorite thing to to is hang out with her friends. She has three brothers, which has toughened her skin, though her kindness shines through above all. She lives with her brothers, dad and step mom. Her biological mother lives 3000 miles away and she unfortunately has a strained relationship with her.
Beatrice “Bea” Jeannot is of Hatian descent. She’s an ambitious go getter, gunning for Class President of Hill Valley Middle School and wont let anyone stand in her way. She’s the oldest of 4 and lives with her parents and her Grann who moved in with them after her house was destroyed by hurricane Matthew. Bea is studious and responsible but is also an independent leader that often sets the rules.
THEIR JOURNEY
Over the season, we'll see Charlie open up to her new family of friends, while struggling with problems arising in her family at home. Marital problems are plaguing her parents and Charlie is struggling to make her voice heard as a valued member of the family.
Nola's mother's hair salon is failing and it's affecting Nola's lifestyle. She is forced to wrestle with image, money, poverty and accepting help from others.
Bea's Hatian grandmother is having immigration issues and is ultimately deported. The girls help her through this tough time after Bea acts out at school.
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Cara is struggling with the pressure of achievement and finds that cheating at schoolwork is an easy way out with serious consequences when caught.
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We'll follow along each of their journeys, full of laughter and heartache, and watch all the grace and calamity that comes with early teenage-hood.
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MUSIC
Music will play a big role.
We all remember how important music was to us as teens: the songs we got hyped to, the songs that reminded us of our crushes, memorizing the lyrics to songs, playing a single over and over and over again.
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Popular music and sound alike music will help connect this world to our world, and amp up or clarify emotions in a scene.
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Complex little women, figuring out the world and their place in it.
This project stood out to me as a unique opportunity to craft complex, funny, realistic, young black female characters.
It's a show for young black girls to see themselves onscreen, and for the rest of the world to see themselves in young black women.
Curlfriends is a funny, hip, electrifying experience.
Our audience is going to want to hang out with Charlie, Nola, Cara and Bea, four black girls, in all of their magic and mayhem.
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To read more on the pilot episode and season story arcs, click below.