Oscar-winning director Ron Howard is to produce a new, fully-authorized, documentary film about the great tenor Luciano Pavarotti. This documentary will build on the success of Howard's recent Beatles film Eight Days A Week – The Touring Years, which was nominated for a BAFTA Award earlier this year. 

The tenth anniversary of Pavarotti's death will be marked in September, so the time feels right for a reappraisal of Pavarotti's considerable achievements, as Howard explains: 'Pavarotti’s life was replete with the highs and lows of great drama and, like any compelling character, he was also a man of considerable contradictions. His artistic ambition, propelled by his massive talent, and his deep love for humanity drove his career and the powerful bond with his audiences, but they also fueled his other life as a world philanthropist. I am intrigued by the way his emotional passion not only drove his music and his powerful bond with his audiences, but his gift of his other life as a philanthropist.'

The film will be produced with the full co-operation of the Pavarotti Estate, Universal Music Classics and Decca Records. Dickon Stainer, President and CEO of Global Classics, UMG, will serve as an Executive Producer. Stainer's previous film credit was as the Producer of the film Quartet in 2012, which starred Maggie Smith, Billy Connolly and Tom Courtenay, and told the story of a group of retired opera singers gathering for one last hurrah.