Sierra Nizhoni Teller Ornelas (Navajo, born March 3, 1981)[1][2] is a Native American showrunner, screenwriter, filmmaker and sixth-generation tapestry weaver from Tucson, Arizona.

[4][5] Known for writing and production work on shows such as Brooklyn Nine-Nine, Happy Endings, Splitting Up Together, and Superstore, Teller Ornelas has also written and contributed to This American Life and the New York Times.

[12][1][6] She was inspired to leave that job and pursue her dreams of becoming a television writer by a "big swing" her mother and aunt had made in the 1980s when they spent four years weaving an enormous rug.

Mike Schur and Ed Helms, both of whom she had previously collaborated with on various projects, initially pitched the show to Teller Ornelas, seeking her creativity and Native perspective to help bring the vision to fruition.

[18] Teller Ornelas aimed to counteract the sense of weightiness and emotional misrepresentation she frequently experienced when viewing Native stories on TV that were crafted by non-Native writers.

[5][9] Following the cancellation of Rutherford Falls, Teller Ornelas co-wrote the Bay Area-based comedy with two other Native artists, Bobby Wilson and Jackie Keliiaa.

[23] The show is set to be based in Los Angeles, California where six Latin friends (i.e. amigos) support and rag each other while exploring love, maturing, and defining success in the modern world.

[24][25] The multi-camera family comedy centered on a former backup singer who, fifteen years earlier, abandoned the touring life to settle on the reservation where she will fulfill her dream of being the "cool auntie" while helping raise her brother's children.

Teller Ornelas is utilizing this project to continue her legacy of bring Native American representation and creativity to major network television.