Peter Saraf co-founded Big Beach, partnering with Marc Turtletaub, in 2004 and has served as a producer on all of the company’s films. The company’s recent releases include Sam Mendes’ AWAY WE GO, starring Maya Rudolph and John Krasinski, Christine Jeff’s SUNSHINE CLEANING starring Amy Adams and Emily Blunt, John Crowley’s IS ANYBODY THERE? starring Michael Caine. Saraf was nominated for a Best Picture Academy Award for producing Jonathan Dayton and Valerie Faris’ LITTLE MISS SUNSHINE. He also produced Liev Schrieber’s adaptation of Jonathan Safran Foer novel EVERYTHING IS ILLUMINATED and executive produced Ramin Bahran’s CHOP SHOP. Two of Big Beach’s films will have their World Premieres at the Sundance Film Festival in 2010; Philip Seymour Hoffman's directorial debut, JACK GOES BOATING, and the documentary, LUCKY directed by Jeffrey Blitz.

Before Big Beach, Saraf was an independent producer and long-time partner of director Jonathan Demme and Edward Saxon at the production company Clinica Estetico. His credits include the multiple award-winning ULEE’S GOLD, directed by Victor Nunez and starring Peter Fonda (Golden Globe Best Actor, Academy Award nomination); THE TRUTH ABOUT CHARLIE, directed by Jonathan Demme and starring Mark Wahlberg, Thandie Newton and Tim Robbins; and the critically-acclaimed film ADAPTATION, directed by Spike Jonze, written by Charlie Kaufman, and starring Nicolas Cage, Meryl Streep and Chris Cooper.

Saraf has also produced a range of successful documentaries, including Jonathan Demme’s THE AGRONOMIST, which won the IFP Gotham Award for “Best Documentary”, the Academy Award-nominated MANDELA: SON OF AFRICA, FATHER OF A NATION, and ONE FOOT ON A BANANA PEEL, THE OTHER FOOT IN THE GRAVE, a portrait of the AIDS crisis.

Apart from features and documentaries, Saraf has been active in the production of concert films, including THE COMPLEX SESSIONS with Neil Young and Crazy Horse and Jonathan Demme’s STOREFRONT HITCHCOCK, starring Robyn Hitchcock. With David Byrne, Saraf re-mixed and re-mastered the 15th anniversary re-release edition of the seminal Talking Heads concert film, STOP MAKING SENSE.