The Frame

With the State of the Union upon us, Bill Pullman recalls his roles as Commander-in-Chief; trans actress Daniela Vega plays a groundbreaking trans role; Rachel Morrison is the first woman nominated for an Academy Award in cinematography.

The Grammys are slammed for under-representing women; a New York Times essay argues that the Time's Up movement is subverted by award shows; Aimee Mann won the Best Folk Album Grammy — one of the few women to take home a trophy.

How did Pati Jinich, the granddaughter of Eastern European immigrants, end up hosting a popular Mexican food show?; the NAMM show is a dizzying array of instruments and gadgets; The Secret Sisters are nominated for best folk album at the Grammys.

The Irish actor traverses big budget movies like "Star Wars" and indie films like “A Futile and Stupid Gesture”; a new USC study shows how women are underrepresented in pop music; Benj Pasek and Justin Paul are nominated for the Broadway musical, “Dear Evan Hansen.”

Best jazz album nominee Billy Childs talks about how L.A. inspired his hybrid style; as the music industry gathers for the Grammys, what are its challenges?; two filmmakers step out from the shadow of the legendary Hayao Miyazaki.

Kyle Buchanan of Vulture.com and film critic Amy Nicholson maintain that younger and more diverse nominees are a result of the academy broadening its membership; "Baby Driver" director is a Grammy nominee for the film's pop-heavy soundtrack.

John Horn chats with Daveed Diggs and Rafael Casal about their ode to Oakland; the SAG Awards put the spotlight on women and the road ahead to gender equality on Hollywood; PJ Morton is nominated for best R&B album (“Gumbo”) and best R&B song (“First Began”).

A report from John Horn at Sundance, where the festival offerings include a film about a certain Supreme Court justice; Pacific Standard Time LA/LA includes a performance festival with Latino/a artists from the U.S., Mexico and South America.

"Small Mouth Sounds" was inspired by the playwright's experience at a three-day silent retreat; the bro-centric Spike TV channel is re-branded as The Paramount Network; composer Gabriel Kahane took a cross-country train trip and the result was a song cycle about Trump-era America.

Matt Ingebretson and Jake Weisman's "Corporate" is a workplace comedy that heads into some very bleak territory; Rachel Morrison was behind the camera for "Mudbound" and "Black Panther"; Harvey and Bob Weinstein are reportedly pushing for their former studio, Miramax, to buy The Weinstein Co.

Bill Maher’s use of a racial epithet on his HBO show has led to calls for Maher's firing and ignited debate over who can say the N-word. We get reaction from NPR's Karen Grigsby Bates and "Dear White People" filmmaker Justin Simien; Brett Haley's new movie, “The Hero," looks at our admiration of cinematic heroes through the life of an aging actor whose public persona is defined by a role he played on screen.

Artist Jeff Koons has his detractors, but he is an undeniable force in contemporary art; blues veterans Taj Mahal and Keb' Mo' have finally made an album together; George Pérez is the DC Comics writer and artist who revived "Wonder Woman" in the 1980s.

Between the White House Correspondents Dinner, his "Daily Show" gig and Netflix special, comedian Hasan Minjaj is having a good year; a playwriting workshop tries to help veterans re-connect with civilian life; Spotify settles a class action lawsuit that was filed by songwriters claiming they weren’t being properly compensated.

Sheila Nevins talks about how she navigated the workforce early in her career as assumptions about women were changing in America; Now that the DGA and WGA contracts are signed, it’s time for SAG-AFTRA to step to the negotiating table; Mexican-American singer Lila Downs has a new album that takes the romantic ballad genre known as bolero and pairs it with topical lyrics.

After a performance in blackface at an inaugural gala for President Ronald Reagan in 1981, Ben Vereen's career suffered. Artist Edgar Arceneaux has written an experimental play that explores the Broadway legend's intent; Vulture.com's Kyle Buchanan gives a recap on the most striking moments of this year's Cannes Film Festival.

Reed Morano talks about being executive producer and director for the first three episodes of "The Handmaid's Tale"; Zoe Lister-Jones' directed "Band Aid" with marriage and music in mind.

Yuja Wang is an internationally recognized piano genius who is in L.A. for the next two weeks to perform Bartók's piano concertos with the L.A. Phil; David Michod talks about how he’d been looking to make a film about America’s wars in Iraq and Afghanistan for about a decade before he came across Michael Hastings’ book.

Luhrmann's love of hip-hop history brought him on to the series 'The Get Down' which Netflix has just decided not to renew for a second season. He discusses his first foray into television– an ambitious project that Luhrmann says was like producing a Broadway show in every episode. And The Frame visits writer-director Robin Swicord on the set of her Bryan Cranston-Jennifer Garner movie 'Wakefield.'

"Long Strange Trip" documents how The Grateful Dead found its sound and made Jerry Garcia a reluctant leader. "Wait Wait Don't Kill Me" is a podcast musical that satirizes the podcast "Serial," but it's also about our fascination with true crime and murder. Can Snapchat build an audience for short form shows by well-known TV celebs like Conan O'Brien?

Documentary filmmaker Ryan White's investigation of a nun's murder led to uncovering a sex abuse scandal in Baltimore; music critic Ann Powers on the connection between young girls and live music.

"Black Mirror" creator Charlie Brooker and co-executive producer Annabel Jones on their sci-fi show that has become a touchstone for certain moments in real life; promoters of the ill-fated Fyre Festival are reportedly facing a federal fraud investigation.

'Guardians of the Galaxy' director James Gunn opens up about how Marvel Comics and Alice Cooper made him realize he wasn't alone in the world. He explains the importance of score and music to the success of the 'Guardians' franchise; Daniel Fienberg, TV critic for The Hollywood Reporter, and Jeanine Poggi, media reporter at AdAge, recap Upfronts 2017.