Actor, Screenwriter, Director and Film Producer. Born into a wealthy family of landowners, he moved as a child with his parents in Bologna where completed his studies. As a teenager he began to travel around Italy in search of new stimuli and emotions and became interested in the theater for the first time in 1898 during one of his trips to Venice, seeing play a company of wanderers. He started his carreer playing with various theatrical companies and by working among others with Antonio Gandusio. In 1902, he started working for the theatrical company of Emilio Zago and subsequently for the company of Gustavo Salvini and Hermes Zacconi where worked with the silent film star Eleonora Duse. Livio started his career as a film actor in the 1910s playing several film as protagonist including notably "Il delitto della via di Nizza" (1913), "Il romanzo di due vite" of the same year, "L'ereditiera" (1914) directed by Baldassarre Negroni and "Carnevalesca" (1918) by Amleto Palermi. In the following years he became a divo of silent film and played several successful films including "La verità nuda" (1921) directed by Telemaco Ruggeri, "La seconda moglie" (1922) and "La bionda" in 1923, year in which also filmed "Il sacco di Roma" by Enrico Guazzoni, then "Saitra la ribelle" and "Cavalleria rusticana"(1924). In those years he worked with the most famous silent film stars of the time, including Maria Jacobini, Lyda Borelli and Leda Gys. Following the crisis of Italian cinema, Pavanelli emigrated to Austria and then to Germany where he successfully continued his career as an actor. Livio returned to Italy with the advent of sound film, but his star began to decline even though continued to act in several films including "Pergolesi" (1933) by Guido Brignone and "L'ultimo dei Bergerac" by Gennaro Righelli. He also became a successful producer with the film "Vivere" starring Tito Schipa and produced by him for the Appia Film. In 1939, he was screenwriter of the film "La mia canzone al vento" by Guido Brignone. His last film as an actor was "L'altra" (1947) by Carlo Ludovico Bragaglia.