The Frame

To mark the 25th anniversary of the LA Riots, actor-writer Roger Guenveur Smith's fiery solo show “Rodney King” has been turned into a Spike Lee film in which Smith places the beating of King in a broader social context. How did the 2007 writers strike affect the wider economy of LA and California and who would be affected if they strike again? The Fyre Festival is a fiasco.

Filmmaker (and self-professed troublemaker) John Waters spits some wisdom about living life by your terms and offers his advice for young people in his new book, "Make Trouble"; A look at the women of the real and the fictional 'Silicon Valley'; Summer blockbusters hitting theaters sooner and sooner and what actually defines a summer movie is rapidly changing.

Jodie Foster and Tom Hanks share memories of filmmaker Jonathan Demme, who died at the age of 73; executive producer/director Reed Morano talks about adapting Margaret Atwood's "The Handmaid's Tale" for television.

The unsolved JonBenet Ramsey murder became the focal point of a documentary that looks at the making of a film about the case; 50 years ago, the Sunset Strip became an outdoor gallery of billboards that promoted new albums; The Writers Guild was formed in 1921 as a social group.

How filmmaker J.D. Dillard went from receptionist to directing and co-writing the Sundance feature "Sleight." Why disputes over the Armenian genocide have plagued two recently released films including "The Promise." And Actress Vera Farmiga and Kerry Ehrin, co-creator of "Bates Motel," say goodbye to their beloved character, Norma Bates.

"Mystery Science Theater 3000" gets a reboot with comedian Jonah Ray taking over as host. Ray tells The Frame that to make fun of bad movies they actually have to be kind of good; We unpack the religious themes in Kendrick Lamar's new album "Damn"; Art studios and CalArts students pitch their creative ideas "Shark Tank" style.

The Oscar-winning screenwriter makes a documentary about the L.A. riots, 25 years after they happened; two powerhouse theater companies – one in L.A. and one in N.Y. – join forces to take new plays to Broadway; and a Mexican movie theater chain beckons families with an in-theater playground.

As Aloy in "Horizon Zero Dawn," actress Ashly Burch gets to be more than "just a gun with legs"; members of the Writers Guild of America are in the process of taking a strike authorization vote.

When the film's original director dropped out, longtime producer Denise Di Novi decided to take a turn in the director's chair; non-commercial stations that sold some of their broadcast bandwidth are cashing in with tens of millions of dollars.

'Veep' has returned for a new season and Matt Walsh, who plays Mike McClintock, tells The Frame how the show dovetails and collides with reality. On a Song Exploder segment Damon Albarn break down a tune from a new Gorillaz album. In a Coachella recap we hear what happened with Kendrick Lamar, Lady Gaga and Radiohead.

Artist Ai Wei Wei, now no longer under house arrest in China, spent a year traveling around the world to track the global refugee crisis for his documentary, "Human Flow." He tells The Frame he wants audiences to realize this crisis is a human crisis that cannot be ignored. And actor Giancarlo Esposito reveals the personal reasons he wanted to direct, produce and star in "The Show"– a satire about society's obsession with sensationalized reality TV.

Actress Greta Gerwig goes behind the camera for her directing debut, "Lady Bird"; despite claims from studios, there's no apparent corollary between Rotten Tomatoes scores and box office performance; the Diaz sisters, aka Ibeyi, break down their song, "Deathless."

For his new movie, "Brad's Status," writer-director Mike White taps into his relationship with his father. The Whites discuss how their social anxieties are reflected in Ben Stiller's character in the film; we revisit conversations with Creative Arts Emmy winners: songwriter Common, voiceover actor Ashly Burch and "Fargo" composer Jeff Russo.

Actor and producer Nnamdi Asomugha ("Crown Heights") reveals how he made the transition from pro football player to Hollywood; the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) begins with hot movies starring the likes of Jennifer Lawrence and Shia LeBoeuf; how the Venezuelan artist Carlos Cruz-Diez and High School students turned the crosswalks outside the Broad museum into colorful art.

The French street artist JR has installed a provocative image on the U.S.-Mexico border; Oscar's new president, John Bailey, inherits big challenges; "Trophy" examines the politics and controversy of big-game hunting.

The filmmaker debuted his new movie at the Telluride Film Festival — an unlikely love story between a cleaning lady and an amphibious creature being held by the government; DACA recipient Christian Hurtado is included in a documentary about abuse of construction workers in Texas.

The Telluride Film Festival premiered the movie about the 1973 tennis match between Billie Jean King and Bobby Riggs; "Dolores" tells the story of the woman who co-founded the United Farm Workers union.

Several venues in Houston's downtown theater district suffered flood damage from Hurricane Harvey; director Scott Cooper debuts his period western, "Hostiles," at the Telluride Film Festival; a new virtual reality experience puts you in flatline mode.

The Telluride festival has become a reliable bellwether for Academy Award attention; Kira Kelly is a Hollywood rarity: an African-American female cinematographer; behind the scenes with the sound engineers at the Bowl.

In the wake of Hurricane Harvey, we revisit our recent interview with former Vice-President Al Gore about his latest climate change documentary; in "Patti Cake$," Danielle MacDonald plays a rapper from New Jersey whose rocky road is not unlike the path traveled by the actress herself.

The Playhouse's new producing artistic director inherits a theater organization at a crossroads; KC Green created the "On Fire" comic that's become a popular meme; Apple TV is having trouble negotiating movie rights with studios.

Actor Lakeith Stanfield caps a busy year with his starring role in "Crown Heights"; Annie Clark, aka St. Vincent, breaks down her song, "New York," for Song Exploder; Cinefamily is temporarily closed while it deals with sexual harassment complaints and resignations.