The Frame

Alison Bechdel says she thought the idea of having her graphic novel memoir turned into a musical was "insane"; composer John Adams says his landmark opera, "Nixon in China," is as timely as ever; NBC has invested $500 million in Snapchat with big plans for using the social media platform.

Bruna Papandrea has produced hit films such as "Wild" and "Gone Girl," and now she's part of the team behind HBO's "Big Little Lies"; Netflix has a new reality competition series that's being produced for six global markets simultaneously.

C-SPAN anchor Steve Scully (aka "the most patient man on television") talks with The Frame about C-SPAN's origin story, its mission and the role it fills in today's media landscape; Then, actress Jane Kaczmarek explains why she's spending her post "Malcolm In the Middle" years doing theater like Eugene O'Neill's "Long Day's Journey Into Night."

When Asghar Farhadi won the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film, he did not pick up his statue in person. But he was in L.A. last year following our election and he spoke with us about his movie, "The Salesman," and then-President elect Trump; R&B producer and musician Raphael Saadiq has branched out to scoring movies and TV shows.

Award-winning screenwriter Dustin Lance Black created the ABC miniseries, "When We Rise," to bring the history of the gay rights movement into America's living rooms in the hopes of bridging a divided nation and inspiring activism in a new generation; The Oscars are finally over. What must Hollywood do to become more inclusive?

On this year's Frame Oscar preview, get to know some nominees ahead of the big night. Among the guests are the writer/directors of "La La Land" and "Moonlight," actors Ruth Negga, Emma Stone, Dev Patel, and Andrew Garfield; Documentary filmmakers Ava Duvernay and Ezra Edelman; the screenwriters for "Hidden Figures" and "The Lobster," and songwriter Lin-Manuel Miranda. Plus, John Horn and his co-host in The Awards Show Show podcast, Kyle Buchanan, make predictions.

Comedian and art collector Cheech Marin walks the galleries of Frank Romero's retrospective with the artist himself; "Hacksaw Ridge" sound mixer Kevin O'Connell has 21 Oscar nominations but no win ... yet; political and topical ads are likely during the Academy Awards. Who's advertising and how are they hoping to benefit?

Melanie Lynskey felt a deep connection with her character in the Sundance hit, "I Don't Feel at Home in This World Anymore"; a federal judge issues an injunction against a law that prevented websites such as IMDb from publishing the birthdate of actors.

Jordan Peele (of "Key & Peele" fame) makes his film directing debut with the horror movie, “Get Out," which takes on racism in the creepiest fashion; John Horn debates how to improve the Academy Awards broadcast with his "Awards Show Show" podcast co-host, Kyle Buchanan, and TV mavens Alex Jung and Jen Chaney.

The Oscar-nominated movie "Lion" is based on the memoir of Saroo Brierly, whose unbelievable life story was turned into a two-hour film by screenwriter Luke Davies; an annual report on diversity in Hollywood makes a strong case that on-camera diversity is directly linked to box office and ratings success; the WGA honored the screenwriters of "Moonlight" and "Arrival."

The filmmaker describes his new movie as a “spiritual sequel” to “Dazed and Confused," this time with college baseball players sowing their wild oats.

The young actress got a huge break when she was cast on the HBO series, but fans often give her grief about her unlikeable character.

The veteran actor talks about playing the attorney who was both loved and loathed as he turned Simpson’s murder trial into a debate on race in America.

Actor Cliff Curtis is familiar to TV audiences from “Fear the Walking Dead,” but in the new film “The Dark Horse" he transforms himself to play a toothless, bipolar chess genius. Miles Davis’ son and nephew recount how Don Cheadle’s biopic of the late trumpeter, "Miles Ahead" came to be. Virtual Reality is now a reality for consumers, we test drive some content made by Wevr.

Irish actress Lisa Dwan goes solo for a trilogy of works by her homeland's great playwright, Samuel Beckett; the band Songhoy Blues perseveres after extremists took over Mali; bad reviews didn't deter moviegoers who came out in droves for the superhero action film.

Garry Shandling's death has resulted in an outpouring of fond memories, including from former "Larry Sanders" writer Maya Forbes and filmmaker Mark Duplass; Daniel Clowes' new book, "Patience," is described as a "time-travel love story."

Playwright-turned-TV writer Jessica Goldberg explores a religious cult in "The Path"; comedian Garry Shandling dies at the age of 66; studios threaten to leave Georgia if its governor signs a bill that is considered anti-gay; the music from "Star Trek" is featured in a concert tour.

Ethan Hawke plays jazz singer and trumpeter Chet Baker in the biopic, "Born to Be Blue"; Lyle Workman added Latin sounds to the score for the set-in-L.A. Netflix series, "Love"; rapper Phife Dawg was a key member of A Tribe Called Quest.

Charles Roven was a producer on Christopher Nolan’s “Batman” trilogy and now he’s working with Zack Snyder on “Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice”; Jesse Eisenberg on playing Lex Luthor; Rostam Batmanglij leaves Vampire Weekend for a solo career.

Producer DeVon Franklin's "Miracles from Heaven" is a new style of faith-based film; Aofie O'Donovan's latest album was inspired by childhood trips to visit her family in Ireland; there's a high failure rate for for film festivals as they struggle to find a place in the crowded marketplace.

"Midnight Special" filmmaker Jeff Nichols shares how being a father of a young son influenced his new movie and why his next film is about the Supreme Court case of Loving v. Virginia. The UK trio Haelos won the music industry lottery when it got into the Coachella Music Festival. How are changes in the TV biz impacting pilot season?

Co-creator and star Jerrod Carmichael tells The Frame why the NBC comedy "The Carmichael Show" tackles social issues like sexual identity and the Bill Cosby controversy; The Police's drummer Stewart Copeland gets the 1925 silent film "Ben-Hur" out of cold storage to write its score; Teenage classical music students learn to improvise.