The eight-part series, "Chicagoland," will premiere in 2014.
CNN said Wednesday that "Chicagoland" will explore where politics and policy meet people's lives in the quintessentially American city.
Redford called Chicago a city with "a rhythm all its own" and said he is "honored" to play a part in telling its story.
"Chicagoland" comes from Sundance Productions. It will be produced by Marc Levin and Mark Benjamin, the filmmakers who made the award-winning "Brick City," a documentary TV series about Newark, N.J.
