The Frame

The singer/songwriter wrote his Grammy-nominated album, "American Utopia," prior to our recent political discord, but he remains determined to find the silver lining in society; studio executives are talking the talk but not walking the walk when it comes to hiring women directors.

Kit Steinkellner talks about creating the Facebook Watch series about a widow dealing with her husband's unexpected death; the 2019 Coachella headliners include Childish Gambino(!) and Ariana Grande(?); Janelle Monáe breaks down a song from her Grammy-nominated album, "Dirty Computer"

The stage director made history with "The Lifespan of a Fact" by assembling the first all-female design team for a Broadway show; Netflix has pulled an episode of Hasan Minhaj's "Patriot Act" from its service in Saudi Arabia after a protest from the Saudi government; Mary Gauthier's "Rifles and Rosary Beads" has a Grammy nomination for Best Folk Album.

The former Monty Python member revisits his life and career in the memoir, "Always Look on the Bright Side of Life: A Sortabiography"; Luciana Souza puts Leonard Cohen poems to music.

José James pays tribute to singer/songwriter Bill Withers with his new album "Lean on Me."

Alfonso Cuarón reveals the intense process of mining his own memory, and those of his siblings and childhood nanny, to recreate their shared story for the screen in "Roma."

Rosamund Pike reveals how she channeled the late war reporter Marie Colvin in the film "A Private War."

Afghan-American artist Ariana Delawari documents the process of recording an album of music in her family's homeland; Max Baca of the band Texmaniacs on covering the Woody Guthrie song "Deportee"; Boz Scaggs still sings the blues.

We bring you some of our favorite interviews from the year — covering television, movies, music and the arts. Guests include Tessa Thompson, Riz Ahmed, Lena Waithe and Hannah Gadsby.

John C. Reilly joins "Stan & Ollie" director Jon S. Baird to talk about making a movie about the legendary comedic duo Laurel and Hardy. Then, Joanna Kulig stars in "Cold War," Poland's official submission for Oscar which is also the story of filmmaker Pawel Pawlikowski's parents.

Tom Petty recently finished a 40-year anniversary tour with his band. L.A. Times pop music critic Mikael Wood joins us for a remembrance of the music icon's career; in the wake of the mass shooting at a music festival in Las Vegas, NPR music critic Ann Powers talks about country music's complicated relationship with gun culture.

The Pasadena Playhouse marks its 100th anniversary with a collaboration on "Our Town" with Deaf West Theatre; some outdoor concert venues are using a pre-screening process for ticket buyers similar to what the TSA uses at airports.

Megyn Kelly's "Today Show" debuted to mixed reviews and negative social media chatter; coming soon to an L.A. film festival is a little-seen North Korean film with an incredible back story; Clive Davis reflects on six decades in the music business, making stars and shepherding careers.

"Stronger" tells the inspiring true story of Jeff Bauman, a man who after enduring the Boston Marathon bombing, lost both legs and became a reluctant hero. Jake Gyllenhaal, who stars in and produced the film, discusses how personal the story was and answers criticisms that the lead should not have been played by an able-bodied actor; we look at Hugh Hefner lesser known history as a regular backer and producer of documentaries about pioneering women in early Hollywood.

Actor-turned-director John Carroll Lynch talks about making "Lucky" with Stanton, who died earlier this month; the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures is moving toward a 2019 opening; after Sofia Maldonado finished a mural in Long Beach, her return home was canceled by Hurricane Maria.

Zach Anner has cerebral palsy, which helps him as a writer on the TV series, "Speechless"; voice actors who work on video games end their long strike against game producers; Facebook has a new feature where you can watch original video content.

Hannah Beachler's career as a production designer is booming — from "Fruitvale Station" to "Moonlight," "Lemonade" and "Black Panther"; how will the clash between the NFL and President Trump affect TV ratings?; "It" is now the highest grossing R-rated horror film of all time, so who is that little girl featured in the creepy score?

In "Unrest," Jennifer Brea documents life with Myalgic Encephalomyelitis or ME–commonly known as Chronic Fatigue Syndrome. By turning the camera on herself and others she hopes to teach audiences about this misunderstood illness; In 1992, a 24-year-old black man named William Ford, Jr. was shot and killed by a white man in Long Island. Now, his brother, Yance Ford has made the documentary “Strong Island" to uncover why it happened and what the aftereffects were.

Choreographer Matthew Bourne has made a career out of adapting his favorite movies and novels into dance productions. His latest work is based on the 1948 film, "The Red Shoes"; the new streaming service Revry is filling a niche that other platforms miss by targeting an LGBTQ audience; the family of Colombian drug lord Pablo Escobar ratchets up their trademark dispute with Netflix over "Narcos," while refusing to comment on the killing of a crewmember in Mexico.

Director Darren Aronofsky explains his divisive thriller, "mother!"; MacArthur fellow and USC professor Josh Kun and percussionist Alberto Lopez discuss their curation of the soundtrack to "Pacific Standard Time: LA/LA"; The new players who replaced the familiar, traditional buyers at the 2017 Toronto International Film Festival.

Director Angelina Jolie and producer Rithy Panh discuss their new film, "First They Killed My Father," about the Cambodian genocide. The film was made was made with an entirely Cambodian cast and crew and is the country's official foreign language entry for the Oscars. The online platform Patreon was created in 2013 to help artists connect with patrons. CEO Jack Conte explains what $60 million in new funding will mean for the site.

'Battle of the Sexes' co-directors Valerie Faris and Jonathan Dayton say their movie about the 1973 tennis match between Billie Jean King and Bobby Riggs is both about the public fight for gender equity and King's private struggle with her sexuality; newly minted Emmy winner Reed Morano on directing the first three episodes of 'The Handmaid's Tale'; What were the highs and lows of last night's Emmys?