Baz Luhrmann: There's the image of Elvis and then there's the man'

"We really wanted to get an interview with Elvis on film, said Jerry Schilling, a confidant and employee of the King who at that time was working for the company behind the movie. But he was tired when we were going to do it and for whatever reason we never wound up getting anything on camera. They did, however, get Presley to talk casually on tape for about 40 minutes, during which he said things he never put on record before."

"The tape was our lightbulb moment, said Luhrmann by Zoom from his office in LA. Because Elvis was off camera when it was taped, I think he was really unguarded and really open hearted. We thought, What if we use this in the film so that Elvis tells his story himself?"

"Quotes from that interview wound up functioning as the film's thematic spine, connecting a mad swirl of images, voice overs and editing derring-dos that turn the movie into what the director calls a dreamscape poem of Elvis. That approach - hallucinogenic in tone and sweeping in reach - extends the style Luhrmann established in films like Strictly Ballroom, Moulin Rouge and his first Elvis movie."

In spring 1972, a film crew documented Elvis Presley's first tour in nearly a decade. During production, filmmakers recorded a 40-minute casual interview with Elvis that was largely suppressed by his manager Colonel Tom Parker during his lifetime. Over five decades later, Baz Luhrmann incorporated significant portions of this audio tape into his new film Epic: Elvis Presley in Concert, a follow-up to his 2020 Elvis biopic. The unreleased interview serves as the film's thematic spine, with Elvis's unguarded remarks connecting surreal imagery, voiceovers, and innovative editing. Luhrmann describes the resulting work as a dreamscape poem, employing his signature style of manic editing, surreal imagery, and blurred timeframes to reinvent the concert film format.

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