A child of undocumented Latino parents, Johnny Sánchez was born and raised in Brooklyn, N.Y.  

 

Johnny caught the acting bug when he was cast in his elementary school’s 'FELIZ NAVIDAD' show (a bilingual Christmas experience).  His first professional film was OUTRAGEOUS FORTUNE opposite Better Midler and Shelley Long, playing 'Puerto Rican Kid', robbing both women.   He was fourteen years old.    

 

His career spans over 35 films, 15 TV shows and countless stage productions.  Highlights include:  212 (Sundance Official Selection), SIDE EFFECTS (directed by Steven Soderbergh), BOWFINGER (opposite Steve Martin and Eddie Murphy, directed by Frank Oz), AND JUST LIKE THAT... (HBO Max), THE EQUALIZER (CBS), Law & Order: SVU (NBC), and MARVELOUS MRS. MAISEL (Amazon).

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However, not seeing the opportunities he yearned for as a Latino actor, Johnny started producing.  His first foray into producing was as Co-Producer on the feature film FIND ME GUILTY directed by Sidney Lumet (Academy Award Honoree), starring Vin Diesel and Peter Dinklage.  

 

Working with the legendary Sidney Lumet, Johnny learned a lot.  He also saw the changes that need to happen in the industry for BIPOC and Female producers (especially, if you're working class) to succeed.  

 

He also Co-Produced EVEN MONEY - starring Academy Award winners Kim Basinger and Forest Whitaker.  

 

As lead producer, Johnny produced the multi award-winning short film S.P.I.C. which played at over 30 film festivals worldwide.  The film garnered over 15 awards, including Best of Fest (Blackbird Film Fest), Best Female Filmmaker (FOLCS Shorts), Best Ensemble Cast (SoCal Int’l Film Fest), Best Multi-Cultural Film (SPE Media Film), etc..  Inspired by events from his youth, Johnny wrote S.P.I.C.  

 

Other films he Produced:  MUSCLE (starring March Menchaca, Reiko Aylesworth and Fiona Graham) and A THROUGH M (produced in collaboration with The American Film Institute).  ​

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Bob Yari (Yellowstone, Tulsa King, Crash, Lioness) has said:  “Johnny is a producer who possesses both a logistical and creative eye for filmmaking.  He understands the value of both, never sacrificing either.”  Johnny has several feature films in active development.

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While Johnny enjoys protest art, his true passion is uniting people.  Bridging different kinds of people, with varied POV's and unrelated lifestyles, is what makes him tick.  Johnny endeavors to use storytelling as a tool to entertain, question and ultimately unite.

 

Johnny and Heidi are a husband-wife filmmaking team.