[1] He is best known as the director of films Johnny Mad Dog, A Prayer Before Dawn and Asphalt City.

At the end of 2000, he directed his three short films, La Mule (co-directed with Rossy De Palma), A Dios, and Matalo.

The film was an adaptation of the novel Johnny Chien Méchant by Congolese writer Emmanuel Dongala.

After the success of the film, Sauvaire directed the telefilm Punk in 2012, which was co-produced by Arte, with Paul Bartel and Béatrice Dalle.

In 2023, Sauvaire directed Black Flies, an adaptation of the eponymous novel by Shannon Burke, with Sean Penn and Tye Sheridan.