Andrew Goldberg Director Bio
Director and Executive Producer Andrew Goldberg is the founder and owner of Two Cats Productions in New York City. For nearly 15 years, he has produced and directed news and documentaries for such networks at PBS, ABC and CBS, along with numerous networks internationally.
His current project, OUT in America, is a one film that explores through first person narratives, what it means to be LGBT in the US. It is scheduled to air nationally on PBS in June 2011 during LGBT Pride Month. The film is an uplifting collection of unique, transformative stories and inspiring personal narratives told through the lens of the country’s most prominent LGBT figures and pioneers, as well as many average, yet extraordinary, citizens from Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender communities. The film is funded by PBS, the FORD Foundation, Goldman Sachs and others.
In April, 2009, his film, Jerusalem: Center of the World, aired on the PBS National Program Service garnering ratings nearly 40% higher than the PBS national average. Praised for its multicultural approach, one newspaper called it “a generous-to-all rendering of history... filtered through three religions yet wrested free of the emotion and dogma that colors most views of the Holy City.” The Los Angeles Times called it “a yeoman’s task…timely and timeless.” and New York Newsday described it as “Wonderful… Grade A.” Hosted by Ray Suarez of the PBS NewsHour, the two-hour film explores Jerusalem’s history, culture and impact on the world.
His earlier film, The Armenian Genocide received extraordinary reviews and coverage in almost every major newspaper in the US including The Wall Street Journal, The Los Angeles Times, The Washington Post and The Boston Globe. The NJ Star Ledger called it “…serious, literate and ultimately heartbreaking.” Alessandra Stanley of The New York Times described it as a “powerful” film that “…honors the victims of the Genocide.” The film, which was screened at the US Congress in an event hosted by three US Representatives, has been licensed internationally to networks in Canada, Australia, France, Italy, Spain, Portugal, Greece, Finland and many other countries. Narrated by Julianna Margulies, the film features additional narrations from Ed Harris, Natalie Portman, Orlando Bloom, Laura Linney, Paul Rudd, Jared Leto and others. This production of this film followed three other PBS/Public Television films by Andrew about the Armenians including The Armenian Americans (NETA Award, NYF Worldmedal), Images of the Armenian Spirit (Telly Award), and The Armenians: A Story of Survival (CINE Golden Eagle award).
His 2003 PBS film, They Came to America explores stories of why people come to the United States, and what it means to –in their own words— to be American. The film which features interviews with Frank McCourt, Cheech Marin, Alex Yemenidjian (CEO of MGM) and others, won the CINE Golden Eagle for outstanding programming. According to The Wall Street Journal: “The producers knew what they were doing… An impressive 90 minutes… and a consistently affecting one.”
He also produced the acclaimed Proud To Serve: The Men and Women of the US Army, hosted by the legendary Walter Cronkite. The film, which aired nationwide on PBS stations tells the story through first person narratives, of what it means to be an American soldier and why they choose to serve. The Wall Street Journal wrote of the film that it was “...absorbing,” and “...not to be missed.” adding “...they are all narratives, extraordinary in their detail, to say nothing of their power to move.” The film was underwritten by Dell, United Technologies, Veterans Life Insurance, Vibram Shoes, and Balfour Rings.
In addition to many other prime-time PBS films, Goldberg has written and produced for Good Morning America’s “Weekend Window”, CBS News Sunday Morning, National Public Radio’s All Things Considered and NOW With David Brancaccio. His NOW piece on animals and Katrina won the prestigious Genesis Award in 2005. His work has been supported by more than 50 foundations including the Ford Foundation, the Koret Foundation and The Aimwell Foundation.
He has also produced extensively about animals and the natural world including segments on the butterflies of Michoacan, Mexico, the orangutans and primates of Sumatra, and the Bharatpur Bird Sanctuary in Rajasthan, India.
He holds a BA in History from Northwestern University (concentration Middle East and Early Modern England) and an MBA from the University of Chicago. He and his wife live in New York City with their two cats.