Film Producer and CEO of Price Productions — on Turning a Family Promise into an Award-Winning Documentary, What Persistence Really Looks Like in Hollywood, and the Hidden Side of Producing Films with Chevy Chase, Bruce Dern, and Evander Holyfield
Keli Price did not plan to become a film producer. He was an actor — the kind of person who shows up on set and waits to be called. Then, in 2014, he made a decision that changed everything: he would make a documentary about his great-grandfather, Jack Brooks, a Jewish immigrant who arrived at Ellis Island in 1923, became a world-class speed skater, and beat Olympic champions off the ice — but was barred from competing on Olympic ice because of the double stigma he carried at the time. It was supposed to be a home video for Thanksgiving dinner.
It became a wide-release documentary. Athletes like Evander Holyfield, Allyson Felix, Apolo Ohno, Greg Louganis, and Robbie Rogers joined the project, drawn to its message of inclusion, acceptance, and diversity in sports. The film secured a distribution deal with the CBC in Canada and landed on every major streaming platform in the United States. People at the screenings kept asking Keli how he had done it — how he had assembled the talent, financed the production, and delivered the whole thing without ever having made a movie before. His answer was simple: he had made a promise to his great-grandfather before he passed, and he could not stop until he kept it.
From that one documentary, Price Productions was born. Today the company produces four to six films a year, with credits including Bandit, CATnip starring Chevy Chase and Bruce Dern, and On Thin Ice. In this episode, Keli opens up about what producing actually requires — the sleepless nights on set, the fires that only the producer can see, the qualities that separate a great film from a forgettable one, and why persistence and resilience will always outperform any degree. He also talks about legacy, family, and the hardest question Sergey asks every guest: what is your calling?
Keli Price is a film producer and the CEO of Price Productions, an independent production company based in Los Angeles. He began his career as an actor — a role that put him on sets, around directors and cinematographers, and inside the mechanics of filmmaking long before he ever thought of producing. That background gave him something film school rarely does: a working, instinctive understanding of how a production actually runs from the inside.
His transition to producing happened through one of the most personal projects imaginable: a documentary about his great-grandfather Jack Brooks, a Jewish immigrant who arrived at Ellis Island in 1923 and became a world-class speed skater despite being barred from Olympic competition. What started as a family tribute became On Thin Ice — a feature documentary featuring Evander Holyfield, Allyson Felix, Apolo Ohno, Greg Louganis, and Robbie Rogers, distributed by the CBC in Canada and available across major US streaming platforms.
From that single project, Price Productions grew into a company producing four to six films per year. Credits include Bandit, CATnip starring Chevy Chase and Bruce Dern, and several other features in development and distribution. Keli's philosophy is grounded in the same quality that launched his career: persistence. He believes the traits you cannot teach — grit, resilience, the ability to stay calm under pressure — are worth more than any credential. And he leads every production with that conviction.
It was 100% an accident how we started Price Productions. I was an actor first and all of a sudden I had this idea to do a documentary on my great-grandfather.
I just had the persistence to do something for my great-grandfather cuz I made a promise to him before he passed. And I really didn't feel good that I hadn't done anything for him. So I could not stop.
persistence and resilience and all of those qualities get you so much further. If you don't have that, you can have all the schooling in the world, but it may not help you.