Andrew Sachs on filming during the pandemic, winning an Oscar, and losing his Dad

Andrew Sachs was a VES major (Art, Film and Visual Studies) at Harvard who went on to become a producer of film and television and whose recent work includes two documentary series for Netflix: Heist (2021) and We Are the Champions (2020), as well as the Oscar-winning live action short film Two Distant Strangers (2020). When the pandemic hit, Andrew and his team had to make some difficult, high-stakes choices. Andrew led on creating health and safety protocols that allowed the productions to film safely, as well as solutions to enable remote editing and color mastering. In this interview with Harvard classmate Larry Huynh, Andrew reflects on emotional and technical challenges of navigating the pandemic through his role as a film producer. 


BIOS

Andrew Sachs fell in love with filmmaking at Harvard, and after graduating worked his way up the ranks on film crews to become a Director of Photography. He brought his passion for the craft to shooting music videos, independent feature films, commercials, and documentaries. Around the time his first child was born, he birthed a production company and started to both produce and shoot corporate communications, branded content, music videos, and experimental feature films. Looking to grow as a producer and collaborate to tell stories that would have wider social impact, he joined a larger production company as they embarked on their first documentary series. He helped expand the production capacity of the company and eventually became head of production. He is currently a producer on a premium documentary series for Showtime. Andrew lives in Los Angeles with his wife and two kids and loves hiking and camping with his family.
 
After graduating from Harvard, Larry Huynh went to San Francisco for love and work. After meeting in the Harvard Glee Club, Brent Blackaby '96 and Larry now share two amazing kids through surrogacy and live way up in the Berkeley Hills. He dreads joining the PTA, knowing he will be sitting in the back corner complaining about the annoying parents (or will he be the annoying parent?). For the last two decades, Larry has run a digital marketing firm specializing in political campaigns and corporate public affairs. The struggle to make the world better is real. As crazy as his home state is, Larry will love Texas forever and cheers for the Astros, Rockets, and Longhorns when his kids allow him to turn off Paw Patrol.


CREDITS

Executive Producer: Shauna Springer
Technical Producer: Jen-Chun Chao
Art: Kate Isenberg 

Music:
Too Late for Tears
Written by Andrea Litkei and Ervin Litkei
Courtesy of APM Music