Martin Scorcese returning to documentaries with 1970s music exploration
Variety has brought word that acclaimed director Martin Scorcese (The Irishman) will return to the documentary genre with an exploration of one of his most prominently explored time periods, the 1970s New York City music scene.
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The documentary comes as part of Ron Howard and Brian Grazer’s production banner Imagine Entertainment looking to revamp their lineup, namely its documentary unit, which was founded in September 2018 and is headed by RadicalMedia executive Justin Wilkes and longtime HBO Documentary Films senior vice president Sara Bernstein.
While plot details are currently being kept under wraps, it’s not the first time the Oscar-winning director has explored the genre, with the most notable being the short-lived HBO drama Vinyl, which he co-created and executive produced with The Rolling Stones’ Mick Jagger.
The untitled documentary also sees Scorcese returning to the documentary genre which first took off with The Last Waltz, which is often credited as the greatest concert documentary in the genre, and also included 2005’s Grammy-winning No Direction Home: Bob Dylan, 2008’s Shine a Light, 2011’s George Harrison: Living in the Material World and this year’s acclaimed Rolling Thunder Revue: A Bob Dylan Story by Martin Scorsese.
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While they have signed a first-look deal with Apple TV+, no distributor is currently set for the documentary. Scorcese is currently exploring the streaming service world with the newly released crime epic The Irishman, in which he’s reunited with frequent collaborators Robert De Niro (Goodfellas) and Joe Pesci (Casino), while also finding his first project with Al Pacino (Scarface). The highly-acclaimed Oscar contender is currently enjoying a limited theatrical release and is set to hit Netflix on November 27.
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