Meet Cara Pomanti of Los Angeles

Today we’d like to introduce you to Cara Pomanti.

Hi Cara, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I grew up in a household of artists so I was destined for something creative. I like to joke that if I had wanted to be a doctor or a lawyer, my parents would have been so disappointed in me. I was steeped in a highly talkative and highly neurodivergent environment, with stories, music, and ideas flying around at all times. I had a mountain of interests to navigate, but no clear direction — until TV came in focus. Specifically, TV comedy. It encompassed everything I loved about visual art, human behavior, fashion, music, language, etc etc. It was a world that I never got tired of being in, but I didn’t know exactly how to participate.

In college, I studied Media Production and became the producer of my school’s comedy troupe — picture Liz Lemon yelling at a gaggle of rambunctious, hungover man-boys (all named Ben). After graduating, I was tempted to follow the agent track, seduced by secret phone calls and fast-moving intel. But in the middle of sending an email one day, my life flashed before my eyes and I realized that if I didn’t have my hands in the dirt of filmmaking I would die filled with regret. I wanted communication, collaboration, character and creativity all at once, and the best way to achieve that was through writing.

I pointed my compass in the direction of TV production. A few industry jobs and a pandemic later, my resume got floated to a Production Coordinator who asked me to “come in tomorrow at 6am and help us test our crew to get back to work.” I like to say: and the rest is history! Because the AppleTV series “See” became the job that set me on my path. I learned all the inner and outer workings of a high-budget, streaming series, and met the showrunner who became my mentor. I moved from the office to set, where I learned more in one day than I did in four years of school. I did back-to-back seasons and ultimately became the Director’s Assistant. It was the most challenging and rewarding year of my life. I know we’re not “saving lives” in entertainment, but we were the first show back to filming after COVID, and let’s just say the stakes were high.

After See I got an incredible job as Showrunner’s Assistant to Zoe Lister-Jones on her Roku/Peacock TV comedy “Slip”. She wrote, directed, produced, and starred in every episode, so I had approximately… 7 billion jobs. I had so much fun helping to bring her beautiful vision to life, and because of our close working relationship, got to take on more responsibilities while she was in front of the camera. I became an Associate Producer and got to see the show through post-production to its premiere at the SXSW Film Festival.

In the background of all of this, I was cultivating a mentorship with Jonathan Tropper from my “See” days. He had read my script, delivered the hard truth about my disastrous structure, but believed in my voice. I read some of his developing projects as we kept up correspondence, and then one day he had an original series of his own greenlit — and he asked me to be the Writer’s Assistant.

I served as the Writer’s Assistant on Season 1 of ‘Your Friends & Neighbors’, then was promoted to Staff Writer on Season 2. In between, I moved from Toronto to LA — a dream that had been brewing since a third-year college trip to UCLA. (But probably harkens back to the first time I saw a picture of the Warner Bros’ water tower.) Shortly after Season 2 I got the chance to write on Will Arnett’s “Super Team Canada” — an adult-animated comedy about a bunch of dead-beat Canadian superheroes, showrun by former Simpsons’ writers. My worlds were colliding in a universe so stupid-silly it’s actually brilliant.

This just scratches the surface. There’s more to the story: the close-calls, the immigrant visa woes, the unexpected story inspirations… but all of this to say, I’m living the artist’s life I always dreamed of but never could have imagined would be this hard, exciting, confusing, and so, so worth it.

We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
Ha… HA. I guess it would make for a pretty boring story if it was. The most recent challenges I can think of concern things largely outside of my control — visa requirements to work in the States as a Canadian, the industry contraction and job scarcity, the instability of choosing an entrepreneurial career. But if I think in broader terms, the biggest obstacles for me have been the ones in my own mind. I grew up hating writing because I had deep-seated fears around perfectionism and the overwhelm of my imagination. I chose ‘safer’ pursuits so I wouldn’t have to confront how difficult it would be to overcome my challenges and learn a craft that still stumps the masters. It was a long and arduous journey getting here — and it didn’t even start with me. I come from a long line of unrealized women writers. To some extent, this felt bigger than me. Not that my voice is more important than theirs, but that using it is an important power to harness, even when it scares you, and even if you don’t always know what’s going to come out.

Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
I’m a television writer and producer in both comedy and drama. I have written on the crime drama-comedy “Your Friends & Neighbors” with Jon Hamm (AppleTV+), the adult-animated comedy “Super Team Canada” with Will Arnett (Crave/Tubi), produced on “Slip” for Dakota Johnson’s Tea Time Pictures (Roku/Peacock), and am currently developing an original comedy feature. Apart from my screen work, I do sketch and improv with the Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre and independent troupes, write comedic essays for various publications, and host an upcoming podcast called “How Do You Live With Yourself?” that is all about exploring human behavior.

I am most proud of the opportunities I’ve had to learn about the making of TV. I learn best on the job, and getting to witness or participate in the craft of storytelling, the phases of production, and collaborative nature of this business has been gratifying and challenging in the best way. I’m also proud of any instance where I can make people smile, laugh, or feel good from reading/watching my content.

What sets me apart is probably two-fold. One is the unique point of view that any creative brings to their work. It’s what makes my everyday life a bit frustrating — overactive imagination, obsessive thinking, relentless drive, fear of failure, confusion around topics that other people find generally straightforward — but when channeled into my work, frames the world in an interesting way. The second is my determination. It has carried me through situations I’ve liked, and ones I’ve hated, but the motivation to press on, do better, or finish something has led to a lot of growth, and I can see it in my work.

Who else deserves credit in your story?
I have an unending well of gratitude within me that can never be filled no matter how much I thank the people who have helped me — and I will thank them to a point where it’s uncomfortable. I lucked out with parents who have supported me through thick and thin. I’ve had teachers and mentors along the way, who have cheered me on or opened doors — like my showrunner Jonathan Tropper. There’s my esteemed group of writer friends who believe in my voice, read my work, and see past my messy exploration to what I ultimately want to create. I’m a big advocate for “telling people how you feel”. I will cold-message strangers if I liked something they made (friends too, I’m not a monster). Outward success doesn’t make for inexhaustible confidence — unfortunately, creatives/humans need constant reassurance!

Navigating a creative career is difficult, especially in Hollywood, and especially in 2026, so I want to dispel some myths around this. There are times when my parents haven’t just supported me with words of affirmation, they’ve provided financial support. There are some mentors I’ve had who only gave me one piece of advice/encouragement, but it carried me for months, or even years. And sometimes a cheerleader or champion is actually the client who has hired me to do the job. It’s not about finding help, it’s about showing up for the thing I’ve been trusted to do.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.cara.pomanti@gmail.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/pomantini

Image Credits
Apple Video Programming LLC