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Rita Hsiao

Rita Hsiao

Writer · Poughkeepsie, New York, USA

Rita Hsiao was born and raised in Poughkeepsie, NY, USA, the American-born daughter of Chinese parents. At UC San Diego, she majored in artificial intelligence, but decided t olook for a job in writing. After writing a spec script fo r"The Wonder Years, " she joined Disney. She wrote a pilot of her own called "Laurie Hill", and worked on "Ellen", before moving to "Thunder Alley" and "All American Girl". She is currently working on the Disney films "Dinosaur" and "Toy Story 2."

Read more

Biography from IMDb.

From
Poughkeepsie, New York, USA
Works as
Writer
Titles
11 on MovieCove · 12 credits in all
Links
IMDb (opens in a new tab)TMDB (opens in a new tab)Wikidata (opens in a new tab)

Known for

TMDB popularity, last 155 days to Oct 26Down 17% in 30 days

What are Rita Hsiao's films like?

Across their 6 MovieCove titles with a thematic analysis, their films lean Bonds and Self.

Themes

share of theme weight
Bonds
55%
Self
33%
Morality
9%
Ideas
3%
Friendship3 titles, browse their movies with this themePurpose2 titles, browse their movies with this themeFamily bonds2 titles, browse their movies with this themeComing of age2 titles, browse their movies with this themeLoyalty2 titles, browse their movies with this theme

What they feel like to watch

their average across 6 films
ToneFeelDemandtheir average · filled zone: the category
Light: How heavy the subject matter and outlook get. Browse their light movies.
Tone · Weight
lightdark

Light 4 · Serious 2 · Dark 0

Heightened: How far its world departs from everyday reality. Browse their heightened movies.
Tone · Style
naturalisticheightened

Grounded 0 · Stylized 1 · Heightened 5

Charged: How hard the emotional peaks hit while you watch. Browse their charged movies.
Feel · Intensity
gentleintense

Gentle 3 · Charged 3 · Intense 0

Shifting: How much it swings between very different feelings. Browse their shifting movies.
Feel · Swings
steadyswings

A split, not a type: Steady 4 · Shifting 2 · Whiplash 0

Funny: How much of the runtime is played for laughs. Browse their funny movies.
Feel · Humor
noneconstant

Straight-faced 0 · Some laughs 1 · Funny 5

Even-paced: How fast it moves from scene to scene. Browse their even-paced movies.
Demand · Pace
slowrelentless

Slow burn 0 · Even-paced 6 · Relentless 0

Casual: How much focus it asks of you — look away and lose the thread? Browse their casual movies.
Demand · Attention
casualfull focus

Casual 5 · Engaged 1 · Full focus 0

Resolved: How much is left for you to interpret. Browse their resolved movies.
Demand · Resolution
resolvedambiguous

Resolved 6 · Open-ended 0 · Ambiguous 0

Moods and endings

endings are an aggregate; no title is named

Dominant moods · mentions across their titles

Joyful
4
Hopeful
4
Triumphant
2
Tense
2
Bittersweet
2
Other
4

How their films linger

Hopeful6 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteFeel-good3 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteBittersweet2 titles, browse their movies with this aftertaste

How their films end

  • Happy4
  • Bittersweet1
  • Cyclical1

AI-generated from each title's plot synopsis and cast list, with extra plot summaries, reviews and Parents Guide notes for titles the model may not know, and the model's own knowledge of the ones it recognizes. Only analyzed titles count, so this covers part of the filmography; the feel axes count films only for now.

Where can I watch Rita Hsiao's films?

As of October 24, 2026, all 11 MovieCove titles stream on a subscription or free service, most on Disney+ (6).

Also on these channels

Subscription and free streaming for Rita Hsiao's titles on MovieCove; rent and buy are not counted. Titles are listed by Midcredits score, highest first, at most 12 per service; a dashed chip is a producer credit or a minor one, such as a thanks. A service opens the browse page, which counts movies only, so its number can differ.

Filmography

12 credits, 11 with a MovieCove page.

  • Toy Story 5(2026)

    Characters

    Midcredits score: 91st percentile of all films

  • In Your Dreams(2025)

    Writer

    Midcredits score: 64th percentile of all films

  • The Monkey King(2023)

    Screenplay

    Midcredits score: 40th percentile of all films

  • The Mighty Ducks: Game Changers (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2021)

    Show 1 episode · Writer

  • Toy Story 4(2019)

    Characters

    Midcredits score: 92nd percentile of all films

  • My Little Pony: The Movie(2017)

    Screenplay

    Midcredits score: 65th percentile of all films

  • Toy Story 3(2010)

    Characters

    Midcredits score: 99th percentile of all films

  • Enchanted(2007)

    Writer

    Midcredits score: 85th percentile of all films

  • Catwoman(2004)

    Writer

    Midcredits score: 1st percentile of all films

  • 13 Going on 30(2004)

    Writer

    Midcredits score: 66th percentile of all films

  • Toy Story 2(1999)

    Screenplay

    Midcredits score: 98th percentile of all films

  • Mulan(1998)

    Screenplay

    Midcredits score: 97th percentile of all films

Career shape

A full career of 12 titles from 1998 to 2026.

Biggest box office

Toy Story 2 (1999)

$497M worldwide

Highest rated

Toy Story 2 (1999)

Midcredits 98th

By role

only this rolewith another role
Writing12 of 12: 12 only writing, 0 with another role · typical Midcredits score85th

By decade

1990s2 · crew2000s3 · crew2010s3 · crew2020s4 · crew

Counts from TMDB across their full career, self appearances out; a title counts in every role they held on it. The ring is the typical Midcredits score (the median percentile) of the role's titles that are on MovieCove, shown from 5 scored.

How do Rita Hsiao's films land?

Their typical MovieCove film has a Midcredits score in the 85th percentile, the median of all 11; across their 6 films with reception data, the typical film sits in the 76th percentile for acclaim.

Acclaim · how much people like their films

76thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 6

Approval · how many liked their films

72ndpercentile
Typical film, the median of 6

Reach · how many have seen their films

98thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 6

Midcredits score across 11 titles, by percentile

  • 75th and up6
  • 50th to 74th3
  • 25th to 49th1
  • Below 25th1

Shape of the crowd

4 of their 11 titles are Universally Loved.

  • Universally Loved4
  • Universally Panned1
  • Crowd Pleaser4
  • Mixed2

Most divisive · writer

My Little Pony: The Movie (2017)

70th percentile spread · 16% rated it 4 or lower

Most loved · writer

Toy Story 3 (2010)

Midcredits 99th · 90% liked

Reviewers score the dialogue 59/100 and the plot and story 53/100 in their films, across 6 reviewed titles. The element that speaks to their work as a writer.

Percentiles are each film's standing among all films on MovieCove; the typical film is the median, so one outlier cannot drag it. Percentiles and reviewer scores count the films IMDb credits them on, for now; the Midcredits score bands, the shape of the crowd and the two cards count their MovieCove titles, shows included (a show ranked among shows), appearances as themselves left out. A descriptor is the shape of a title's IMDb rating distribution against the catalog; "most divisive" needs a spread wider than half of all titles, and a card names only a principal credit: a craft role, and on a show a crew role or a run of episodes, never a courtesy credit or a one-off guest spot.

Is Rita Hsiao's work okay for kids?

Across up to 6 MovieCove titles with content scores, violence & gore, profanity and alcohol & drugs run lighter than most films.

Their medianMedian of all filmsMiddle 80% of their titles
Violence & Gore5 titles29–39 · median 33 · mildlighter than most filmsMedian of all films: 44
Sex & Nudity6 titles12–34 · median 22 · mildnear the median of all filmsMedian of all films: 32
Profanity5 titles6–17 · median 14 · minimallighter than most filmsMedian of all films: 36
Alcohol & Drugs5 titles5–15 · median 6 · minimallighter than most filmsMedian of all films: 33
Frightening / Intense5 titles28–53 · median 41 · moderatenear the median of all filmsMedian of all films: 39

Severity 0–100 from the Content Guide. Categories with under 10 votes on a title are not counted. The band's colour is the severity of their median, named beside it.

Who does Rita Hsiao work with?

People who share at least 2 of Rita Hsiao's MovieCove titles; Jolie Hoang-Rappaport shares the most, 2.