The Frame

A new report by the Ralph J. Bunche Center for African American Studies at UCLA says movies and TV shows with diverse casts (such as "Empire," pictured) make good financial sense; Song Exploder breaks down the theme song for "House of Cards"; a new stage production at CalTech takes "Alice Through the Wormhole."

How did Amy Poehler's sitcom (pictured) survive seven seasons of average ratings?; Sam Beam, aka Iron & Wine, returns to his musical roots with "Archive Series Volume Number One"; Wes Anderson's Oscar-winning film is the subject of a new book; the L.A. Philharmonic stages a multimedia production of "Alice in Wonderland."

Sam Beam -- better known by his stage name Iron and Wine -- started writing stripped down folk songs more than a decade ago in his bedroom in Miami, Florida. After experimenting with Jazz, R&B and Pop, he returns to his quiet folk music roots with “Archive Series Volume No. 1.” Iron and Wine performs a live-set of songs new and old for The Frame. Set List: "Everyone’s Summer of ’95” “Two Hungry Blackbirds” “Low Light Buddy of Mine” Our interview with Beam and more here: http://www.scpr.org/programs/the-frame/2015/02/20/41644/iron-wine-performs-songs-from-archive-series-volum/ Video produced by Zach Stamey, James Kim and Maya Sugarman.

A special edition of The Frame examines Hollywood's diversity challenge with screenwriter José Rivera, producer Effie Brown and Frank Leonard, CEO of the The Black List screenplay project.

Many of the winners of the 87th Academy Awards joined us on The Frame to talk about their work. Hear from Alejandro Gonzalez Iñárritu, Best Adapted Screenplay winner Graham Moore (pictured), Best Actress Julianne Moore and ... more!

“Comedy Bang Bang” host Scott Aukerman (far right, with sidekick Reggie Watts) loves and laughs at late-night talk shows; How the "Interstellar" sound editor created the sound of gravity; The indie film crowd gets raucous at the Independent Spirit Awards; How "Hero" by Family of the Year became the unofficial theme song of “Boyhood."

Photographer Sandro Miller talks about how he recreated some of the world’s most famous portraits with actor John Malkovich (pictured) as his muse; Kate Burton and Jason Robards talk about being second-generation actors; The sound designer from "Birdman" breaks down a scene from the film.

Lin-Manuel Miranda and Thomas Kail have another stage hit with their hip-hop musical, "Hamilton" (pictured); How the sound editors for "Unbroken" created a pivotal scene for the movie; Thomas Lennon plays Felix Unger in CBS' remake of "The Odd Couple."

Jason Blum made his name producing successful, low-budget horror films, but he could get an Oscar as part of the producing team for "Boyhood" (pictured); the Sundance Institute pairs composers and filmmakers at Skywalker Ranch; Simon Rich's "Man Seeking Woman" is one of the most bizarre sitcoms on TV.

Our interviews with the best actors, best directors and more ahead of the Academy Awards. Hear from Wes Anderson, Alejandro Iñárritu (far right, with Michael Keaton), Richard Linklater, Benedict Cumberbatch, Julianne Moore, Eddie Redmayne, Reese Witherspoon and more.

Liz Feldman talks about her series that stars Christina Applegate and Linda Cardellini and walks a fine line between comedy and tragedy.

The novelist and comic book creator co-wrote the novel with Terry Pratchett, but they couldn't get a production going before Pratchett's death in 2015. The current Amazon series fulfills their dream.

The actress stars as a harsh talk show host in the new movie written by Mindy Kaling.

Craig Mazin talks about his HBO miniseries that challenges our knowledge of the 1986 nuclear meltdown in Russia; record labels are in for a windfall, but how much will artists see?; "Godzilla" lives to romp and stomp again.

Her book is the basis for the Hulu series that stars Aidy Bryant as a young woman who defies being defined by her weight; a stringent abortion law in Louisiana could threaten TV and film production there; veteran pop music critic recounts Elton John's 1970 U.S. debut.

Randall Park and Ali Wong had been talking about making a romantic comedy for years and it's finally come to pass; with William Morris/Endeavor going public, the talent agency's finances are under scrutiny.

The former Texas Congressman's run for the U.S. Senate is documented in an HBO documentary that provides insight into his current presidential campaign; a recap of the Cannes Film Festival; "Echo in the Canyon" owes a lot to "California Dreamin'."

John Horn and Los Angeles Times film writer Jen Yamato are your guides to the Summer movie season. Guests include Kumail Nanjiani ("Stuber"), Olivia Wilde (director of "Booksmart") and Emma Thompson ("Late Night"). With the Elton John biopic coming up ("Rocketman"), we'll hear from the pop music critic who covered Elton's 1970 U.S. debut in L.A. And John reports from the trade floor at CinemaCon where vendors pitch the food and drinks they're trying to get into concession stands.

Why Icelandic artist Ragnar Kjartansson made a 12-hour version of the final aria of Mozart's beloved "The Marriage of Figaro"; Harvey Weinstein and his former studio's board members reach a tentative $44 million settlement with the women who've accused him of sexual misconduct; and art writer Jori Finkel on what inspires artists.

The most lucrative season for studios and cineplexes is usually filled with action films and sequels, but scary movies are making big inroads; a new study indicates that LGTBQ representation in movies improved in 2018; the guitar duo Rodrigo y Gabriela in their element.

The actress went behind the camera for the teen girl comedy, which marks her directing debut; an Amazon TV series and a movie starring Kristen Wiig have canceled plans to shoot in Georgia because of the state's new abortion law; singer, songwriter and guitarist Steve Gunn.

The TV series co-creators, Sarah Schneider and Chris Kelly, talk about their offbeat family comedy; can the video app TikTok take over music streaming?; recreating 1969 in "Once Upon a Time in Hollywood."