We had the good fortune of connecting with Michael J. Epstein and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Michael J., why did you decide to pursue a creative path?
Art is the system by which we make sense of our perceptual and psychological interpretations of the world. I have a science background and am deeply invested in the scientific method and scientific pursuits, but there are abstractions that can only be touched by art.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
Along with my collaborators at our production company, Launch Over, we seek to tell subtext and metaphor-driven sociopolitical stories using genre film. We’re excited to continue to grow and tackle new projects and different types of projects and to collaborate with a variety of filmmakers. Nothing worth doing creatively is going to be easy. We are glad to work very hard to overcome limitations in resources and to push the limits of what we can accomplish. Every project is an opportunity to try something new and to learn something new. We have yet to really find that we can’t discover new mistakes to make. I might even say the goal is to always make new mistakes!

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
Before the pandemic, we were big fans of the movie-theater experience, and we look forward to the day when we can return. We take all of our friends to The Egyptian, the Aero, the Vista, and the New Beverly, to name a few, so that we can enjoy the incomparable repertory film programming.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
I want to dedicate all of my creative work to those who pursue justice for those who are underserved by and underrepresented in power hierarchies.

Website: http://MichaelJEpstein.com
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/MichaelJEpstein/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/MichaelJEpstein
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MichaelJEpstein/
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCNKQZn0PEyqr4YCnt95mmDg?view_as=subscriber

Image Credits
Courtesy Launch Over

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