Martin Scorsese will co-executive produce an authorized feature documentary on the Grateful Dead in honor of the band’s 50th anniversary. Deadline Hollywood is reporting that the film will be directed by Amir Bar-Lev, who is known for his films The Tillman Story and Happy Valley. Grateful Dead archivist David Lemieux will serve as the film’s music supervisor.
According to Deadline Hollywood, the currently unnamed project will include never-before-seen footage of concerts and backstage antics, along with new interviews from surviving members Phil Lesh, Bob Weir, Mickey Hart, Bill Kreutzmann and others from the Grateful Dead circle.
A statement from Lesh, Weir, Hart and Kreutzmann reads, “Millions of stories have been told about the Grateful Dead over the years. With our 50th Anniversary coming up, we thought it might just be time to tell one ourselves and Amir is the perfect guy to help us do it. Needless to say, we are humbled to be collaborating with Martin Scorsese. From The Last Waltz to George Harrison: Living In The Material World, from Bob Dylan to the Rolling Stones, he has made some of the greatest music documentaries ever with some of our favorite artists and we are honored to have him involved. The 50th will be another monumental milestone to celebrate with our fans and we cannot wait to share this film with them.”