Epic Magazine

11/07/2024

A 3,000-degree inferno at nearly 4 a.m. melted the freeway interchange known as the MacArthur Maze. It was 2007, and by the time the sun rose on Oakland, the double decker interchange had collapsed, blocking traffic in multiple directions. The state of California had a $5-million-dollar-a-day economic disaster on its hands.

Repairing it would be a gargantuan challenge, and Governor Schwarzenegger wanted it done in record time.

Enter C.C. Myers. A 6’ 6”, ostrich-boot-wearing construction legend, Myers pulled together a motley crew to do the job. Mitch Moxley’s feature in Popular Mechanics, published in glossy print for the April/May 2024 issue, recounts how he and his team pushed past setback after setback to pull off a seemingly impossible feat.

https://www.popularmechanics.com/preview/technology/infrastructure/a60433142/macarthur-maze-reconstruction-cc-myers/

20/05/2024

Some stills from "an extremely bingeable story"—Apple TV+'s THE BIG CIGAR, based on a true story by Epic's co-founder Joshuah Bearman and starring André Holland as Huey Newton.

19/05/2024

It was the '60s. The era of change, war, and rebellion. Huey Newton, the co-founder of the Black Panther Party, was a revolutionary with a vision, first for self-defense against racist policing and then for an “intercommunal” world of bottom-up social reform. He wanted to change the world, and he did. Bert Schneider was a Hollywood revolutionary. With Easy Rider, he ushered in the New Hollywood era, a brief, shining decade when art and commerce were aligned on the silver screen.

Bert and Huey were best friends. Together, they wanted to change the world. And they did.

Then it was the '70s. The high-water mark of the era of idealism was in the rearview mirror. Huey and Bert had become titanic figures, but drugs, ego, and reactionary action from the government took their toll, and by 1974, Huey and Bert were on the ropes. Huey was being accused of a murder but said he was framed. After two years in solitary confinement on an overturned conviction, he refused to be mistreated in prison again.

So he showed up at Bert’s house in the Hollywood Hills in the middle of the night and said: I need to get out of here. Bert’s only question was: Where? Huey said: Cuba.

And so Bert, along with his producing partner, Huey, and the Black Panthers, planned a daring escape…

This is the story of Epic co-founder Joshuah Bearman’s article, "The Big Cigar." This weekend, that story comes to the screen in a limited series on Apple TV+. The first two episodes are out now, and then new episodes drop every Friday. Enjoy!

https://tv.apple.com/us/show/the-big-cigar/umc.cmc.5067l9fz7usyhgjfbzy6ib0na

26/04/2024

There's a new Epic article in the issue of Popular Mechanics that hit newsstands this week. Mitch Moxley's feature tells the tale of how an unconventional crew fixed a catastrophic bridge breakdown in record time. It's a treat to have a story in good old-fashioned print!

24/04/2024

Presenting the trailer for the limited series THE BIG CIGAR, based on an Epic true story about Black Panther Party founder Huey P. Newton's risky escape to Cuba—aided by a Hollywood producer making a fake movie. The series premieres 5/17.

The Black Panther Party, a fake movie production, and a nationwide manhunt. This is the true story of Huey P. Newton's escape to Cuba. The Big Cigar premiere...

22/03/2024

Felicidades a Eugenio Derbez, who won a Diosa de Plata (Mexico's equivalent of the Golden Globes) for his leading role in Radical!

Eugenio Derbez triunfa en la edición 48 de las Diosas de Plata como mejor actor por su trabajo en la cinta 'Radical', con lo que consolidó así su sueño de por...

13/03/2024

This morning, episode eight of Varnamtown was released, which completes the wild saga of this quirky and co***ne-saturated coastal town. You can listen now from the idyllic-seeming start to the dramatic finish.

Along the way, you’ll encounter REO Speedwagon, President Ronald Reagan, a shootout in a Miami mall, Pl***oy bunnies, and clam cops. You’ll venture with us through the corridors of Dale Varnum’s carnivalesque Fort Apache, where a toilet—or an attack turkey—waits around every corner. And you’ll be in good company: Other listeners have called this town’s tale “absolutely kooky,” “hilarious,” and “the wildest story I’ve heard in a long time.”

Check it out:

Listen to Varnamtown on Spotify. Two years ago, Kyle MacLachlan, the star of Twin Peaks, called investigative journalist Joshua Davis with a strange story. Kyle had heard a rumor that Pablo Escobar did a deal in the early 1980s with a remote, coastal Southern town of 300 people. In exchange for vast...

06/03/2024

The penultimate episode of Varnamtown is out now, and we're meeting the man himself: Dale Varnum.

Two years ago, Kyle MacLachlan, the star of Twin Peaks, called investigative journalist Joshua Davis with a strange story. Kyle had heard a rumor that Pablo Escobar did a deal in the early 1980s with a remote, coastal Southern town of 300 people. In exchange for vast wealth and limitless co***ne, Es...

31/01/2024

Some reviews for Varnamtown's first two episodes—glad people are enjoying the ride! Next stop: episode three, where you'll meet "Magic Mike," one of the cops who brought this drug kingdom down.
PodcastOne

25/01/2024

Welcome to Varnamtown! Episode 1 is out now: https://link.chtbl.com/YwvJVGBC

18/01/2024

We know what Kyle MacLachlan (and maybe Lorde?) is listening to: a new podcast about a tiny coastal town and a whole lot of co***ne, brought to you by us and PodcastOne, and cohosted by Kyle and Epic co-founder Joshua Davis. 🎧 Audio trailer for VARNAMTOWN coming soon… 🎧

10/11/2023

A few stills 📸 from RADICAL in honor of its second weekend in U.S. theaters.

03/11/2023

Today's the day: You can now see RADICAL in theaters across the U.S! Here are early audience members' reactions to the film. If you see it, we'd love to hear your thoughts too.

27/10/2023

T-1 week until Radical is in theaters in the US! Here are some flattering words from critics that we hope convince you to see it on a big screen next weekend.

(Find tickets here: https://www.fandango.com/radical-2023-233084/).

20/10/2023

Radical is in theaters in Mexico starting today! Sharing a few photos from this week's premiere to celebrate:
1. Director Chris Zalla and Epic co-founder Joshua Davis with the film's young stars: Danilo Guardiola, Jennifer Trejo, and Mia Fernanda Solis.
2. Epic's Joshua Davis with the real-life Paloma and her family; Josh's Wired article about Paloma and her teacher is the true story on which Radical is based.
3. Producer Ben Odell, writer-director Chris Zalla, and producer Joshua Davis.

18/10/2023

Big 24 hours for Radical - The Movie, which won overall audience favorite at the Mill Valley Film Festival and had its Mexico premiere!

(Obligatory reminder that Radical is in theaters in Mexico starting Friday and in the U.S. on 11/3!)

13/10/2023

Epic co-founder Joshua Davis and star Eugenio Derbez at a screening of our upcoming film Radical at the Mill Valley Film Festival . Radical premieres a week from today in Mexico and on November 3rd in the U.S.—we suggest saving the date.

21/09/2023

We proudly present the teaser trailer for RADICAL, in U.S. theaters on 11/3.

Based on a true story reported by Epic cofounder Joshua Davis, RADICAL tells the story of a teacher (Eugenio Derbez) who takes a unconventional classroom approach that inspires his students in the Mexican border city of Matamoros. But his out-of-the-box approach to learning also has unforeseen consequences.

12/07/2023

Mark your calendars: Radical, a film from 3Pas Studios and Epic, will hit theaters on 10.20.23!

EXCLUSIVE: Participant has partnered with TelevisaUnivision’s Pantelion Films and 3Pas Studios on Radical, the Eugenio Derbez-led film written and directed by Chris Zalla. Radical will be released …

09/05/2023

Our latest story: https://www.chicagomag.com/epic/the-last-gamble-of-tokyo-joe/

Ken “Tokyo Joe” Eto was unusual for a high-ranking leader in the Chicago mafia. A Japanese American who spent his formative childhood years during World War II in an internment camp, Eto learned the rackets and how to hustle, which eventually helped him become the most powerful non-Italian member of “The Outfit.”

In Chicago, Ken Eto was a rising star, an enormous earner, a trailblazer of modern mob operations — until his Italian colleagues mistakenly questioned his allegiance and shot him in the head. Three times. Unfortunately for them, Eto survived. In the hospital, Eto was greeted by law enforcement; he'd been on their radar a long time. There, a federal prosecutor talked a bloodied Eto into turning his back on his personal code of ironclad loyalty and becoming an informant.

Dan O’Sullivan’s atmospheric story starts with a bang, in the literal and figurative sense. And it only gets more captivating from there.

Published by Epic and Chicago magazine in a glorious 14-page print spread in its May issue, “The Last Gamble of Tokyo Joe” is live online now.

27/01/2023

What an honor! Thanks to all the audiences at who watched and loved this film, and the cast and crew who helped translate this true story to the screen.

26/01/2023

Snapshots of the RADICAL premiere and Q&A at Sundance Film Festival one week ago today. Featuring producers Joshua Davis and Ben Odell, director and writer Chris Zalla, producer and star Eugenio Derbez, and actors Mia Fernanda Solis and Jennifer Trejo.

Photos by Jutharat Pinyodoonyachet, courtesy of the Sundance Institute.

24/01/2023

On Thursday, our movie Radical premiered on Sundance Film Festival's opening night. Based on a true story reported by co-founder Joshua Davis about one Mexican teacher's unusual approach to learning fostered genius in students everyone else underestimated. Produced with 3Pas and starring Eugenio Derbez.

Below are just a few of the reactions to this rooted-in-real-life tale. Thanks to everyone who's spent 127 minutes with Sergio and his students so far.

"A movie based on a wildly inspiring true story with a HUGE heart and stellar ensemble" —Collider
"Derbez has never been better than in this film" —Deadline
"[Director Chris] Zalla teaches a lesson on how to deliver an affirming, emotional gut punch." —New York Post

13/01/2023

Interrupting your scroll with some really exciting news: two NAACP Image Awards nominations! Our movie Breaking is nominated for Outstanding Independent Motion Picture, and Phylicia Rashad's performance in Little America is up for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Television Movie, Limited-Series or Dramatic Special.

09/12/2022

Tonight, for the first time, you can tuck into 's second season on Apple TV+! This anthology series tells the stories of eight real people who immigrated to America. It's poignant, funny, honest, and was a labor of love to make. https://tv.apple.com/us/show/little-america/umc.cmc.2ice8mlcn1zrtxf81e5ktwg8p

07/12/2022

Team Epic's Monday night antics: the season 2 premiere. Eight episodes of heartfelt, humorous, and unexpected television—based on the true stories of immigrants—coming to Apple TV+ this Friday.

02/12/2022

When writer Ingrid Rojas Contreras was in her twenties and living in Chicago, she crashed her bike, tumbling over handlebars and hitting her head. A generation earlier in Colombia, her mother had tumbled into a well. Mother and lookalike daughter both lost their memories, all at once. Their story is episode 7 of the Little America podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/remembering-a-forgotten-life-with-lina-misitzis/id1651757291?i=1000588311259

‎Show Little America: The Official Podcast, Ep Remembering a Forgotten Life (With Lina Misitzis) - Dec 1, 2022

02/12/2022

Seven out of the eight episodes of the podcast have dropped. That means there's only one more week until Little America's second season hits your TV (or laptop) screen on Apple TV+. Listen to all of the episodes here: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/little-america-the-official-podcast/id1651757291

‎TV & Film · 2022

02/12/2022

You might have heard of Angelica Rubio's family: in the 70s, her mother saw an image of Jesus on a tortilla, and people made pilgrimages to their home to see it. In ep. 6 of Little America: The Official Podcast, Shereen Marisol Meraji (you might know her as being a former host of NPR's Code Switch) revisits the story—and the effect the media circus had on the family. https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/jesus-on-a-tortilla-with-shereen-marisol-meraji/id1651757291?i=1000587379224

‎Show Little America: The Official Podcast, Ep Jesus on a Tortilla (With Shereen Marisol Meraji) - Nov 24, 2022

18/11/2022

New podcast episode out now—go find your headphones!

It's about Hiroki Koga's quest to grow the exquisite strawberries he remembered from his youth in Japan on American soil.

‎Show Little America: The Official Podcast, Ep Engineering the Perfect Strawberry (With Hannah Kingsley-Ma) - Nov 17, 2022