After his father died in 1908, the family relocated to Switzerland, where Epstein remained until beginning medical school at the University of Lyon in France.

Nevertheless, his early writings brought significant inspiration within European continental philosophy, specifically those currents dealing with realism and materialism.

[3] Epstein posits the notion that cinema possesses a magical quality due to its ability to transcend certain limitations of representation, surpassing "the resemblance of things" and achieving an "efficiency superior to forms," which he regards as the pinnacle of cinematography.

Epstein, in an interview: “‘In your opinion, do films fashioned according to the cubist or expressionist taste represent the quintessence of cinema?’ This time, my answer was even more categorical: ‘No, it is but an accessory of cinema and almost an ill-state for this accessory.’”[4] In numerous instances and through various expressions, Epstein contrasts narration with an alternative system of representation more closely aligned with cinematic brilliance – what we might term a descriptive framework.

Here, experimentation supplants narrative conventions with the potency of scientific inquiry, transposing it into the realm of aesthetics and aligning cinematography with three primary objectives:[5]