Rebecca Sugar facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Rebecca Sugar
Sugar at the 2019 Peabody Awards
Born	Rebecca Rea Sugar (1987-07-09) July 9, 1987 (age 38) Silver Spring, Maryland, U.S.
Alma mater	School of Visual Arts (BFA)
Occupation	Animator writer producer director musician
Years active	2007−present
Known for	Steven Universe
Spouse(s)	Ian Jones-Quartey ​ (m. 2019)​

Rebecca Rea Sugar (born July 9, 1987) is an American animator, writer, producer, director, and musician. She is famous for creating the Cartoon Network series Steven Universe. She was the first person who identifies as non-binary to create a series for Cartoon Network. Before she shared her non-binary identity, she was known as the first woman to create a show for the network.

Until 2013, Sugar worked as a writer and storyboard artist for the animated TV show Adventure Time. Her work on both Steven Universe and Adventure Time earned her seven Primetime Emmy Award nominations. Rebecca Sugar uses both she/her and they/them pronouns. Her identity has inspired her to show how important it is to include diverse characters in art, especially in cartoons for kids.

Early Life and Education

Rebecca Sugar grew up in Silver Spring, Maryland. She went to two high schools at the same time: Montgomery Blair High School and the Visual Arts Center at Albert Einstein High School. While in high school, she drew comics called "The Strip" for her school newspaper. These comics won awards.

After high school, she studied animation at the School of Visual Arts in New York. She earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in 2009. During her time there, she made short animated films. One film was Johnny Noodleneck (2008). Another was Singles (2009), which was her final project. Her brother, Steven Sugar, helped with coloring on Singles.

Career Beginnings

Rebecca Sugar helped create nockFORCE, a cartoon series launched on YouTube in 2007. She worked on the backgrounds and characters for the show.

In 2010, she published her first graphic novel, Pug Davis. It was about an astronaut dog and his friend. She also created a comic called "Don't Cry for Me, I'm Already Dead." This story was about two brothers who loved The Simpsons.

Television Work

Rebecca Sugar at the 2014 New York Comic Con

Adventure Time and Steven Universe

Sugar started working on Adventure Time as a storyboard revisionist during its first season. Because her work was so good, she became a storyboard artist within a month. Her first episode was "It Came from the Nightosphere" in the second season. The creative team encouraged her to use her own life experiences for the character of Marceline. She felt connected to other independent comic artists on the show.

Production for Steven Universe began while Sugar was still working on Adventure Time. She continued on Adventure Time until its fifth season. Then, she left to focus completely on Steven Universe. Her last episode for Adventure Time was "Simon & Marcy." It became too hard to work on both shows at once.

She later returned to Adventure Time to write songs. She wrote "Everything Stays" for the miniseries Stakes. She also wrote "Time Adventure" for the series finale, Come Along with Me. She also wrote songs for the spin-off Adventure Time: Fionna and Cake.

Rebecca Sugar was an executive producer for Steven Universe for its whole run. She was also a storyboard artist for many episodes. The series first aired on November 4, 2013, and ended on January 21, 2019. She directed Steven Universe: The Movie, which came out on September 2, 2019. This movie continued the story after the fifth season. A limited series called Steven Universe Future followed the movie. Sugar was also an executive producer for this series, which ended on March 27, 2020.

Between October 2020 and April 2021, she worked on anti-racism PSAs. These short videos featured characters from Steven Universe. They were released on the Cartoon Network YouTube channel.

In June 2024, it was announced that Sugar would write a new Adventure Time movie. She is working with other creators from the show. On June 11, 2025, a sequel series to Steven Universe was announced. It is called Steven Universe: Lars of the Stars and is being developed for Prime Video. Sugar and Ian Jones-Quartey are executive producers. Sugar shared that she missed the world and characters of Steven Universe.

Other Animation Projects

In November 2021, Rebecca Sugar voiced a street performer in the Amphibia Christmas special. She also wrote a song for this episode. The creator of Amphibia, Matt Braly, praised her song.

In December 2023, it was announced that Sony Pictures Animation is making a fantasy-adventure film. Matt Braly is directing it, and Sugar is writing the script with him. On June 12, 2025, Adult Swim announced a new animated special. It is called "The Elephant" and is set to be released in 2026. Sugar is developing it with Ian Jones-Quartey and others.

Themes and Music

Important Themes in Her Work

Rebecca Sugar has talked about how important it is to include diverse characters and stories. She believes this is especially true for children's entertainment. She wants to support all kinds of diverse content in family-friendly shows. She has explained that Steven Universe helped her understand her own identity. She thinks that showing diverse characters early on can help kids feel good about who they are.

Sugar has been influenced by many animated works. She calls Whisper of the Heart her favorite film. She also found Revolutionary Girl Utena very inspiring. She noted how Utena played with ideas of gender. Other influences include Neon Genesis Evangelion. Steven Universe also has references to shows like Sailor Moon and Dragon Ball.

Music Career

On September 17, 2023, Sugar announced her first personal music album, Spiral Bound. It was released on November 3, 2023. She said it was challenging to write her own songs. The album was inspired by three years of journaling and sketching. It tells the story of healing from stress and past difficulties.

On June 4, 2025, Sugar announced her second album, Lonely Magic. It is set to be released on August 29. She said the album would have "true songs about magic."

Other Creative Work

In 2015, Sugar designed the album cover for True Romance. This album was by Estelle, who voices Garnet on Steven Universe. In 2016, a comic book publisher featured Sugar's sketches for her comic Margo in Bed. In 2018, she was featured in a song called "TOOGOODTOBETRUE" by R&B singer Gallant. On February 24, 2025, a new game called To a T was announced. It features a new song performed by Sugar called "Giraffe Song." The game was released on May 28.

Personal Life

In February 2016, Ian Jones-Quartey confirmed that he and Rebecca Sugar were in a relationship. They had been together for eight years. They met when Sugar was at the School of Visual Arts. They got married on December 4, 2019.

In July 2018, Sugar shared that she created the Gems in Steven Universe as non-binary characters. This helped her express herself as a non-binary person. In August 2020, she said she did not identify as a woman. She had felt pressure to hide this because she was known as the first woman to create a Cartoon Network series. In October 2020, she said she loved putting her experiences into a different context through a non-binary view when writing characters for the show.

Awards and Recognition

Adventure Time Awards

Rebecca Sugar's work on Adventure Time earned her nominations for the Primetime Emmy Award for Short-format Animation. These were for the episodes "It Came from the Nightosphere" in 2011 and "Simon & Marcy" in 2013. The show also received Annie Award nominations for storyboarding.

Steven Universe Awards

For Steven Universe, Sugar has been nominated for many awards. This includes six Primetime Emmy Awards. The series won a 2018 Peabody Award for Children's & Youth Programming. It also won a 2019 GLAAD Media Award for Outstanding Kids & Family Program. In 2015, the series was recognized by the James Tiptree Jr. Award.

Honors and Lists

In 2012, Forbes magazine included Rebecca Sugar on its "30 Under 30 in Entertainment" list. They noted that she wrote many of the best episodes of Adventure Time. Variety also included Sugar in "Hollywood's New Leaders 2016: The Creatives." This list celebrates new filmmakers and creators.

Filmography

Discography

See also

In Spanish: Rebecca Sugar para niños