Recorded Live Inside The Toon Room Community

For Episode 5 of The Toon Room Podcast, I sat down with Rita Street — award-winning animation executive producer, creator, writer, and President of Radar Cartoons — for a deeply honest, wide-ranging conversation about storytelling, resilience, and surviving a life in animation.

Rita’s journey spans decades and disciplines: from growing up in the Mojave Desert fueled by Disney classics, comic books, and Star Trek, to navigating setbacks that rerouted her path away from CalArts and into theater, playwriting, journalism, and eventually animation leadership. Along the way, she became Executive Producer on beloved series like Ruby Gloom, Hero: 108, and Space Chickens in Space, while also authoring the cult-favorite ebook Cartoon Girl’s Secret Guide to Developing Kids Comedy Series.

In this episode, we talk candidly about:

✨ Finding Your Way When the Plan Falls Apart

How missed opportunities, financial setbacks, and detours can become unexpected advantages.

🪑 “Chair Hours” and Craft Discipline

Why showing up every day — even when the work is bad — is the only path to becoming a better writer and creator.

🤝 Networking

How genuine curiosity, generosity, and long-term relationships quietly shape careers in animation.

💥 Why People Don’t Quit

A raw look at resilience, mentorship, and the stubborn love that keeps creatives in the industry.

🎧 Listen now — and if you want to be part of these conversations live, join animators, storytellers, and industry veterans from around the world inside The Toon Room:

👉 thetoonroom.com