Photo Booth portrait

Mariana Pineda

Creator, Co-Director & Producer

The original creator of A Guide to Being a Good Neighbor, Mariana shaped the project from her lived experience as a cultural worker, daughter of Venezuelan journalists and activists, and trusted collaborator of Iggy Pop. For over 20 years, she has worked as a sought-after celebrity makeup artist, developing deep, creative relationships across the arts. Her longtime friendship and professional bond with Iggy anchors the heart of the series. Beyond her creative career, Mariana is a dedicated community activist, working within Miami's local ecosystems to uplift Indigenous wisdom, environmental stewardship, and collective care.

Photo Booth portrait

Natalia Molina

Co-Director & Producer

Natalia joined the project to expand its visual and narrative vision, co-developing the creative direction, assembling the team, and shaping its overall tone. A Miami-born photographer, filmmaker, and creative producer, they have spent over a decade crafting intimate, emotionally layered visual stories across music, editorial, and documentary work. After nearly a decade in Los Angeles, Natalia returned home to South Florida to focus on community-rooted storytelling—centered on ecology, queer identity, and place-based care. Their work often blends myth, memory, and visual poetics, with a commitment to storytelling as a form of preservation and resistance.

Talain Blanchon

Senior Editor & Producer

Talain Blanchon is an editor, producer, and musician working across environmental storytelling, documentary, and music. He is currently contributing to an undisclosed National Geographic project, and previously developed a documentary on primatologist and Trimate, Dr. Biruté Galdikas (alongside Jane Goodall and Dian Fossey). His work is defined by emotional clarity, ecological urgency, and a commitment to truth, guided by reverence for place, people, and what endures.

Photo Booth portrait

Josh Tickell

Executive Producer

Josh Tickell is a filmmaker whose work turns environmental urgency into cultural momentum. After breaking through with Fuel (Sundance Audience Award), he went on to direct globally influential documentaries including Kiss the Ground, Common Ground, and its follow-up Groundswell, helping ignite mainstream conversations around soil, regeneration, and climate resilience. His storytelling bridges science, spirit, and strategy, making complex systems feel personal, actionable, and alive. With a career defined by hope, clarity, and impact, Josh helps anchor this series in the belief that repair is possible, and the future belongs to those willing to act like neighbors.

Photo Booth portrait

Houston Cypress

Tribal Producer

A member of the Miccosukee Tribe of Indians of Florida and founder of Love the Everglades Movement, Houston ensures this project is grounded in cultural respect and sovereignty. He brings years of experience bridging traditional ecological knowledge with contemporary media. Houston was also a producer on a recent Everglades-focused documentary and is deeply involved in land and water protection, decolonial education, and Indigenous-led resistance.

Sonora Rae Johnson

Field Producer, Production Manager

Sonora brings precision, care, and deep ecological awareness to field production and logistics. She has managed complex documentary shoots in sensitive environmental zones, with a rare ability to balance creative ambition and on-the-ground accountability. Her background spans independent and large-scale nonfiction work, most recently including Common Ground (Amazon Prime) and its forthcoming follow-up, Groundswell—two films centered on regenerative agriculture and soil health. As a field producer, Sonora helps teams move with integrity, clarity, and purpose from prep through post.

Johnny O'Hara

Writer

An accomplished documentary writer and screenwriter, Johnny brings structure, emotional clarity, and narrative cohesion to the series. His credits include Fuel (Sundance Audience Award), Bhutto (Peabody Award), Kiss the Ground, Common Ground, and Groundswell, the concluding installment of the trilogy. With a sharp instinct for socially urgent storytelling, Johnny helps shape each episode's arc to bridge science, spirit, and story, ensuring the series is both educational and deeply moving.

Photo Booth portrait

Paula Barros

Writer

Paula Barros is a Miami-based comedian, host, and voice artist whose work blends sharp humor with emotional intelligence and cultural precision. Named Miami New Times' Best Comedian (2024), she brings a rare ability to make heavy subjects feel human, accessible, and alive. Joining the writing team on A Guide to Being a Good Neighbor, Paula helps shape a tone at the edge of punk and tenderness, guiding each "lesson" with clarity, bite, and heart.