Belic was born to Czechoslovakian and Yugoslavian parents, Danica and Dr. Nenad Belic. During his childhood, his mother used a wrench to lock a broken dial on the family TV to the local PBS channel. His first film-making experience was in third grade with his brother, Adrian, when a friend borrowed a super-8 movie camera from his parents. Belic grew up in suburban Chicago and attended Evanston Township High School. Belic later attended the University of California, Santa Barbara.
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. 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. Continuing with his passion of global cinematic journeys, Belic associate produced Beyond the Call, 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, 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 Blu-ray. Following its success, he directed The Batmobile, released on The Dark Knight Rises Blu-ray. Most recently, Belic teamed up with director Tom Shadyac, who executive produced, to make the feature documentary Happy. 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. His father, Nenad, was a retired cardiologist who died while attempting to row solo across the Atlantic Ocean.
