Elvis Takes the Stage Again: “EPiC” Goes Global

Baz Luhrmann’s concert film, produced in part by Authentic Studios, opened across 47 markets and is now drawing awards attention.

EPiC: Elvis Presley in Concert rolled out across 47 markets and more than 3,700 screens. The film puts Elvis Presley’s live performances at the center of a cinematic experience, and it’s one Authentic Studios helped bring to the world.

The film

EPiC features long-lost footage from Presley’s 1970s Las Vegas residency, woven together with rare 16mm footage from Elvis on Tour and 8mm film from the Graceland archive. It also includes rediscovered recordings of Presley telling his side of the story.

The idea behind it

EPiC grew out of archival discoveries Luhrmann and his team made while creating his 2022 feature Elvis. The project began as a search for rumored unseen footage from the 1970s concert films Elvis: That’s the Way It Is and Elvis on Tour, and Luhrmann developed it with editor Jonathan Redmond. The two built the film from some 59 hours of unseen footage from the Warner Bros. vaults, plus audio and visual material from the Graceland archive. Luhrmann has said they set out to make something “more than a documentary and more than a concert film.”

Authentic Studios’ role

EPiC was produced by Sony Music Vision, Bazmark and Authentic Studios, and distributed by NEON and Universal Pictures.

Authentic Studios President Colin Smeeton said the company’s move into production began after the Elvis feature, when Authentic realized the Elvis story is its own intellectual property. Corey Salter, Global President, Entertainment, described the Elvis Presley brand as an example of Authentic’s evolution from a traditional licensing business into a full-service content house.

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A worldwide rollout

The film debuted at the Toronto International Film Festival before its global run. Premieres followed in London at the BFI IMAX with Rod Stewart, at the TCL Chinese Theatre in Los Angeles with Elvis star Austin Butler, in New York with Adrien Brody and F. Murray Abraham and in Paris with Anna Wintour.

Local campaigns followed around the world. Spain saw national TV and newspaper coverage, Sweden leaned on digital and radio, Norway partnered with Sony Music Norway and Denmark teamed up with its largest cinema chain.

Notable Awards

EPiC received four nominations at the 11th annual Critics Choice Documentary Awards. They are Best First Documentary Feature (Baz Luhrmann), Best Editing (Jonathan Redmond), Best Music Documentary and Best Archival Documentary. Winners will be announced Sunday, November 8, at a gala at The Edison Ballroom in Manhattan.