Martin Scorsese to produce documentary for Grateful Dead 50th anniversary

Martin Scorsese is channeling The Dead for his next project.

The Oscar-winning director has signed on as an executive producer for a new documentary film about the Grateful Dead, according to Deadline.

The release of the documentary is timed to coincide with the 50th anniversary of the psychedelic rock band's founding. The as-yet-untitled project will be made with the support of the group's surviving members.

Noted documentarian Amir Bar-Lev, who most recently chronicled the Penn State sex abuse scandal in "Happy Valley," will serve as director.

"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," the band said in a statement. "Needless to say, we are humbled to be collaborating with Martin Scorsese."

"The Grateful Dead were more than just a band. They were their own planet, populated by millions of devoted fans. I'm very happy that this picture is being made and proud to be involved," Scorsese said.

The Grateful Dead was formed in 1965 in Palo Alto, California, just as the hippie scene was beginning to emerge in nearby San Francisco. The band experienced a resurgence decades later with the release of the 1987 single "Touch of Grey" and, through repeated touring, gained a devoted legion of fans affectionately known as "Deadheads."

Frontman Jerry Garcia died in 1995 at 53, following years of heavy drug use, but his bandmates have soldiered on in the years since his death.

Scorsese has been involved in several documentaries about musical performers in the past.

In 2008, he directed the critically acclaimed documentary about The Rolling Stones, "Shine a Light." Scorsese also directed 2011's "George Harrison: Living in the Material World," about the late Beatle's career and his newfound spirituality in his later years.

Scorsese is currently in talks to direct an upcoming biopic about the life of Frank Sinatra and he's also been tapped as an executive producer for a new HBO series about the 1970s rock and roll scene, which is being created by "Boardwalk Empire" show-runner and "Wolf of Wall Street" screenwriter Terrence Winter.