Roko Belic
Roko Belić | |
---|---|
Nationality | American |
Alma mater | University of California, Santa Barbara |
Occupation | Film producer and director |
Years active | 1993–present |
Notable work | Genghis Blues, Happy |
Style | Documentary film |
Partner(s) | Gael Firth |
Children | 2 |
Roko Belic is an American film producer and director. His directorial debut, Genghis Blues, was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature.
Early life and education[]
Belic was born to Czechoslovakian and Yugoslavian parents, Danica and Dr. Nenad Belic.[1][2] During his childhood, his mother used a wrench to lock a broken dial on the family TV to the local PBS channel.[3][4] His first film-making experience was in third grade with his brother, Adrian, when a childhood friend Christopher Nolan borrowed a Super 8 movie camera from his parents.[1] With Nolan, Belic co–directed the surreal Super 8 film Tarantella (1989), which aired on Image Union, an independent film and video showcase on the Public Broadcasting Service.[5] Nolan and Roko also worked together on a documenting a safari across four African countries, organised by the late photojournalist Dan Eldon in the early 1990s.[6]
Belic grew up in suburban Chicago, attended Evanston Township High School[3][7][8] and later attended the University of California, Santa Barbara.[8]
Career[]
For his first feature, Belic was inspired by a story unfolding in the little-known Siberian republic of Tuva. Trusting his intuition, Belic purchased two cameras on credit and flew with his brother to Tuva to create the documentary feature, Genghis Blues (1999).[citation needed] Belic’s landmark film received an Academy Award nomination for best documentary feature and won over 70 international film festival awards including the Sundance Audience Award.[citation needed]
Continuing with his passion of global cinematic journeys, Belic associate produced Beyond the Call (2006), following three American soldiers-turned-humanitarians, traveling to war zones around the world delivering life-saving aid. The following year, Belic co-produced and shot the award-winning Indestructible (2007), filmed in locations from China to Israel, following one man’s search for a cure for his terminal illness.
In 2010, Belic directed the documentary Dreams: Cinema Of The Subconscious, included on the Inception (2010) Blu-ray. Following its success, he directed The Batmobile, released on The Dark Knight Rises (2012) Blu-ray.
Most recently, Belic teamed up with director Tom Shadyac (Bruce Almighty, Liar Liar, The Nutty Professor), who executive produced, to make the feature documentary Happy (2012). Directed, written, and co-produced by Belic, Happy combines powerful human stories with cutting-edge science to give audiences a deeper understanding of our most desired emotion. Happy won numerous awards and screened in 70 countries. It was the #1 documentary on iTunes for over nine weeks and achieved "All-Time Bestseller" status.
Personal life[]
Belic has a daughter and son with longtime girlfriend, Gael Firth.[9][10][11] His father, Nenad, was a retired cardiologist who died while attempting to row solo across the Atlantic Ocean.[12]
Filmography[]
Director[]
- Genghis Blues (1999)
- Happy (2011)
- (2010)
- (2012)
Producer[]
- Genghis Blues (1999) (executive producer) (producer)
- (2004) (field producer)
- Beyond the Call (2006) (co-producer)
- (2007) (co-producer)
Cinematographer[]
- Genghis Blues (1999)
- (2007)
- I Am (2010)
- Happy (2011)
Actor[]
- Totally Fucked Up (1993)
- Fame Whore (1997)
References[]
- ^ Jump up to: a b "About WadiRum". wadirum.com. Retrieved March 2, 2015.
- ^ Freedman, Rich (January 23, 2011). "Belic is back in Bay Area with 'Genghis Blues'". Vallejo Times Herald. Vallejo, California. Retrieved March 2, 2015.
- ^ Jump up to: a b Ramsey, Nancy (July 4, 1999). "How a Creole Singer Wowed Them in Shangri-La". The New York Times. New York City. Retrieved March 2, 2015.
- ^ Curiel, Jonathan (July 1, 1999). "'Genghis' Lets Brothers Leave the Blues Behind/Pair scrimped five years to pay for documentary". San Francisco Chronicle. San Francisco, California. Retrieved March 2, 2015.
- ^ Mooney, Darren (2018). Christopher Nolan: A Critical Study of the Films. McFarland & Company, Inc. p. 5. ISBN 978-14-766-7480-3.
- ^ Eldon Turteltaub, Amy (7 December 2013). "Remembering My Brother Dan Eldon: A Journalist Who Died To Tell the Story". Huffingtonpost. Retrieved 24 August 2020.
- ^ Wilmington, Michael (January 29, 1999). "Documentaries, Foreign Films Are The Real Stars At Sundance". Chicago Tribune. Chicago, Illinois. Retrieved March 2, 2015.
- ^ Jump up to: a b Petrakis, John (September 24, 1999). "For The Love Of Tuva, 'Genghis Blues' Was Filmed". Chicago Tribune. Chicago, Illinois. Retrieved March 2, 2015.
- ^ Gerhard, Susan (July 6, 2011). "Roko Belic Charts Path to 'Happy'". sf360.org. Archived from the original on March 16, 2017. Retrieved February 13, 2020.
- ^ Freedman, Rich (April 22, 2011). "Latest film, first child, keep Belic busy". Vallejo Times Herald. Vallejo, California. Retrieved March 2, 2015.
- ^ Katz, Laura (February 8, 2012). "Interview with Roko Belic, Producer And Director Of Happy, A New Documentary". AskMissA.com. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved February 13, 2020.
- ^ McCann, Tom (December 10, 2001). "Dr. Nenad Belic, 62..." Chicago Tribune. Chicago, Illinois. Retrieved March 2, 2015.
External links[]
- Living people
- University of California, Santa Barbara alumni
- American male film actors
- American documentary filmmakers
- American people of Czechoslovak descent
- American people of Yugoslav descent
- People from Chicago
- Film directors from Illinois