The Frame

To make "Of Fathers and Sons", documentary filmmaker Talal Derki put his life on the line when he embedded with a Syrian terrorist grooming his sons for Jihad; an art installation at The Broad museum in downtown LA is a tribute to American liberalism; and what to watch on TV over Thanksgiving weekend.

The actor plays a nightclub bouncer who is hired to drive a black pianist (Mahershala Ali) through the segregated South; director Steve McQueen directs "Widows," a heist film with a twist.

The director had the unenviable task of making sure Melissa McCarthy was an unsympathetic character in the new movie; Disney's challenge to promote princesses in a changing culture.

For "Roma," filmmaker Alfonso Cuarón meticulously recreated his childhood home and cast lookalikes to play his family, his nanny and his neighbors. He tells John Horn about mining his and others' memories to tell the collective story of his family and his nanny from one tumultuous year in the early 1970's.

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

The acclaimed actor takes on the role of the iconic artist in "At Eternity's Gate."

The British actress plays war correspondent Marie Colvin, who died in 2012 while reporting in Syria.

The comic book icon died today at the age of 95. Bob Batchelor, author of "Stan Lee: The Man Behind Marvel," weighs in on Lee's influence; singer/songwriter Mary Gauthier collaborated with military veterans for her album, "Rifles and Rosary Beads."

New York Times pop music critic Jon Pareles on the elaborate 50th anniversary re-issue of the landmark album; Drew Love and Dante Jones are making noise as the hip-hop duo known as They; the Spanish singer Rosalía is updating flamenco.

Susan Rogers talks about being Prince's studio engineer for several years in the 1980s; a landmark L.A. music story fights to stay afloat; on the road with California Poet Laureate Dana Gioia.

Director Bill Pohlad cast two actors to play Beach Boys mastermind Brian Wilson in two periods of his life (pictured: Paul Dano as the young Wilson); Algiers' singer Franklin James Fisher talks about the group’s politically-charged debut album; 28-year-old New Orleans musician Jon Batiste will lead the band on "Late Night with Stephen Colbert."

Hollywood is rarely more out of touch with reality than in how it romantically pairs young actresses with much older actors (pictured: Emma Stone with Ed Norton); Rupert Parkes, aka Photek, is known for his remixes, but he’s also the composer for TV's “How to Get Away With Murder”; California's increased tax credits for movies and TV is already paying dividends.

Apple is expected to introduce its music streaming service next week, but can the company make gains against Spotify?; L.A. Philharmonic music director Gustavo Dudamel (pictured) reflects on his six seasons on the podium and his long-term future here; Pete Townsend has recorded a new version of his rock opera, "Quadrophenia," with actual opera singers.

Writer-director Paul Feig gets to fulfill his Bond movie fantasy with "Spy"; the bistro at Whole Foods in Pasadena hosts a monthly comedy night (pictured); "San Andreas" director Brad Peyton takes us into his edit suite to show how he assembled one key sequence for the disaster film.

Cameron Crowe's new movie, "Aloha," is being savaged by critics; a visit with legendary L.A. artist Ed Moses (pictured) at his Venice compound; the arts organization Clockshop is making good use of a parcel of land on the banks of the Los Angeles River.

Terry Teachout turned his biography of Louis Armstrong into a play, "Satchmo at the Waldorf" (pictured); a tour of the inventory for special effects and makeup master Rick Baker's auction of his monstrous creations; Film LA reports an increase in movie production in California in 2013 — even before the new tax incentives kicked in.

U2 begins a string of five shows at The Forum on its Innocence + Experience Tour; a new work by Philip Glass is being premiered by the L.A. Philharmonic; Special effects and makeup master Rick Baker (far right) is auctioning a career's worth of monstrous creations.

The Cannes Film Festival wrapped up in typical fashion with an unexpected grand prize winner alongside the requisite victim of critics' ire; in our "Song Exploder" segment, a breakdown of the "Downton Abbey" theme music; playwright Paul Oakley Stovall tackles racism and homophobia among African-Americans in "Immediate Family" (pictured).

Four filmmakers talk about possible solutions for an industry that's been criticized for "widespread exclusion" of women directors; the movie "Tomorrowland" continues the futuristic vision promoted by Walt Disney (pictured at left); Memorial Day is no longer the beginning of summer for the movie business.

Four successful women filmmakers share their stories about an industry that's been criticized for "widespread exclusion" of women directors (pictured: Catherine Hardwicke); classical guitarist Angel Romero performs "Concierto de Aranjuez" with the L.A. Philharmonic; the Rolling Stones rolled into L.A. for a semi-secret show. Were you there?

Memorable moments with David Letterman from comedian Paul Morrissey, Louie Pérez of Los Lobos, and former assistant Cassie St. Onge; comc book writer G. Willow Wilson famously created Ms. Marvel — a female superhero who, like Wilson, is an American Muslim.

"Mad Max: Fury Road" production designer Colin Gibson (pictured) was responsible for the film's insanely tricked-out cars, trucks and motorcycles; Hot Chip's new album goes in a different direction for the indie-electro band; Deaf West Theatre moves its hit production of the musical "Spring Awakening" to a larger space.