The Frame

A powerful documentary about the aftermath of the 2012 school shooting in Newtown, Connecticut premiered at the Sundance Film Festival; Rihanna's new album had a surprise (or maybe not?) release this week; the L.A. Art Fair aims to be the nexus for art from the Pacific Rim.

Nate Parker spent seven years making "The Birth of a Nation," and his efforts paid off as the breakout hit at the Sundance Film Festival; prominent comedians take to the stage to benefit Bernie Sanders' campaign; Larry Klein's work with Joni Mitchell made him a go-to producer for a wide variety of singers.

The legendary R&B singer has a new album and an HBO documentary coming up, but don't expect this to be her swan song; a film about Nat Turner's slave rebellion has set a sales record at the Sundance Film Festival; actresses Alysia Reiner and Sarah Megan Thomas launched Broad Street to counter gender inequity in Hollywood.

With the top award from the Producers Guild, "The Big Short" is now frontrunner for the best picture Oscar. We chat with producers Jeremy Kleiner and Dede Gardner; a Motion Picture Academy officer admits that the organization has been too slow to change; the band Foals has gone from playing house parties to arenas.

Velvet Underground co-founder John Cale has re-imagined an album from his long solo career, "Music For a New Society"; as the "X-Files" returns, we get the story behind its iconic theme music; even at the Sundance Film Festival, the talk of the town is #OscarsSoWhite.

Actor Matthew Spencer, who plays the lead in a new adaptation of George Orwell's dystopian novel, says the story has new resonance today; TV networks are casting doubt about the popularity of original programming on streaming services; Andrew Ahn passed up med school for a film career, and now his directing debut is at Sundance.

Carrie Brownstein, "Portlandia" co-creator and Sleater-Kinney co-founder, pulls back the curtain on her creative process; members of the U.K. punk band Savages reveal how they remain unpredictable on stage and in the recording studio; what's in store at this year's Sundance Film Festival?

In the two years since Lupita Nyong'o won an Oscar for "12 Years a Slave," no actor of color has been nominated for an Academy Award. Academy member Stephanie Allain says the Oscars reflect bigger problems in the industry; James Lecesne continues his advocacy for LGBTQ youth with "The Absolute Brightness of Leonard Pelkey."

Alicia Vikander's breakout year now includes an Oscar nomination for "The Danish Girl"; singer-songwriter Courtney Barnett deconstructs her song, "Depreston"; and we find out which new TV shows are on the must-watch list for the new year.

John Horn and Kyle Buchanan of Vulture.com dig into the snubs and surprises in the Oscar nominations, and the return of #OscarsSoWhite. And we hear from the directors nominated for "Room" and "The Revenant."

So many questions: why is Leonardo DiCaprio nominated for lead actor and Brad Pitt for supporting actor for “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood”?; why wasn't Robert DeNiro nominated for "The Irishman"?; why is Tom Hanks a supporting actor for “A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood”?; and how rare are Scarlett Johansson's nominations for both lead (“Marriage Story”) and supporting actress ("Jojo Rabbit")?

The actress had a breakout year, with roles in “Motherless Brooklyn,” “The Morning Show” and the well-reviewed but barely seen “Fast Color”; Clint Eastwood's "Richard Jewell" is being blasted over its depiction of a female journalist; “Joe Pera Talks With You” and we talk with him.

The museum marks its centennial with an exhibit of objects that were either acquired, published or exhibited in the year it was founded; are The Golden Globes legit or not?; “La Bohème aka The Hipsters” gets an ironic revival.

Mark Duplass on playing supporting roles in two projects tackling #metoo stories; Gugu Mbatha-Raw makes the case for seeing her buried movie "Fast Color"; the debate around black criticism of "Queen & Slim," a Netflix documentary exposes the toxic story of yoga guru Bikram Choudhury...

The 19-year-old filmmaker shot the movie while he was still in high school, and it won him awards at the Tribeca Film Festival; the U.S. Justice Dept. may allow studios to once again own movie theaters; the comedians who warm up TV studio audiences.

Bikram Choudhury made hot yoga an international phenomenon, but he allegedly assaulted a number of female students along the way, as told in a new documentary; should films by black artists be immune from criticism by black writers?; Beverly Hills High School had a pivotal role in "It's a Wonderful Life."

The influential event in Park City, Utah has built its reputation on films that advance racial diversity and gender parity; #PayUpHollywood takes the next step; the Sunset Studios in Hollywood mark their 100th anniversary.

The actor, writer, producer and director talks about his current roles for both TV and film; the Thanksgiving weekend box office kicked off the holiday season; the rapper JPEGMAFIA takes us inside his creative process.

Eddie Redmayne and Felicity Jones last acted together in “The Theory of Everything.” Now they’re back together for a film in which they play 19th Century balloonists; two companies behind the vinyl record renaissance.

The Frame is five years old! We revisit memorable interviews, strange locations, some laughs and a few good cries. Meryl Streep, Jordan Peele, Tom Hanks, Lizzo, Guillermo del Toro, Emma Thompson, Ava DuVernay, Zach Galifiankis, Karyn Kusama, Mark Bradford, Jon Robin Baitz and more...

Actor Adam Driver and writer/director Noah Baumbach reunite for the fourth time for "Marriage Story"; composer Gabriela Ortiz's latest commission for the L.A. Philharmonic.

Writer Lena Waithe and director Melina Matsoukas talk about how the traumatic deaths of unarmed black people by police officers shaped their movie's narrative; five years after the Sony hack, what's changed in Hollywood?