The Frame

Benj Pasek and Justin Paul are on a roll: they wrote song lyrics for "La La Land" and the music and lyrics for the Broadway hit, "Dear Evan Hansen"; more than 3,500 companies are debuting their futuristic products at the annual, massive technology trade show.

Actor and documentary filmmaker Fisher Stevens jumped at the chance to make a documentary about the iconic showbiz mother-and-daughter, Debbie Reynolds and Carrie Fisher; Sorting through the Jan/Feb TV premieres and comebacks to watch for in 2017 with TV critic Whitney Friedlander.

"Hidden Figures" writer Allison Schroeder (who was just nominated for a Writer's Guild award) tells us why she was the right person to co-write the film “Hidden Figures”; In the film “A Monster Calls,” director J.A. Bayona talks about how families might view his dark and personal coming-of-age story; Elliott Smith’s landmark 1997 album, “Either/Or,” gets a 20th anniversary re-issue.

Clay Tarver is a writer and co-executive producer for HBO’s “Silicon Valley," but he recently reunited with his bandmates in the group Chavez to record their first new music in 20 years; there may be a more diverse roster of actor and actress nominees for the Academy Awards this year, but that doesn’t mean #OscarsSoWhite is a thing of the past, says April Reign, the writer and activist who coined the hashtag.

It's our last Frame episode of 2016! From Beyonce's "Lemonade" to Chance The Rapper's "Coloring Book," we look back at the year in music with MTV Executive Editor Alex Pappademas; Also, we revisit one of our favorite musician interviews of the year, soul singer/songwriter Aloe Blacc, who describes himself as an "artivist," someone who blends art with activism.

The singing voice of Debbie Reynolds echoes throughout the show today as we honor the actress who died yesterday; Los Angeles Times culture writer Carolina Miranda picks some of 2016's most impactful moments in culture; playwright Jon Robin Baitz challenged himself in 2016 to write a play responding to Donald Trump's candidacy and get it up before the election. He did that. Now what?

For our wrap up of the best in TV, Margaret Lyons of the New York Times talks with us about the most overrated, underrated and heavily debated shows of 2016; Among the most lauded performances on TV this year was Sarah Paulson as Marcia Clark in the FX mini-series "The People v. O.J. Simpson." Paulson discusses how Clark had been scrutinized by the media and much of America during the trial.

Carrie Fisher imbued the role of Princess Leia with an assertiveness that set the tone for the future Star Wars heroines; Fisher was also the columnist of "Advice from the Dark Side" which ran in The Guardian; New York Times co-chief film critic Manohla Dargis joins John Horn to talk about some of the top film stories of the year.

The popular British singer-songwriter died from heart failure at the age of 53; Kristen Anderson-Lopez is working on a stage musical version of "Frozen," but for now she has another show on Broadway, "In Transit."

David Oyelowo is extremely selective about the roles he chooses to play, and also the kinds of parts he wants to avoid; the Presidential Inauguration Committee has gotten more nays than ayes from singers and bands.

So many questions: why is Leonardo DiCaprio nominated for lead actor and Brad Pitt for supporting actor for “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood”?; why wasn't Robert DeNiro nominated for "The Irishman"?; why is Tom Hanks a supporting actor for “A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood”?; and how rare are Scarlett Johansson's nominations for both lead (“Marriage Story”) and supporting actress ("Jojo Rabbit")?

The actress had a breakout year, with roles in “Motherless Brooklyn,” “The Morning Show” and the well-reviewed but barely seen “Fast Color”; Clint Eastwood's "Richard Jewell" is being blasted over its depiction of a female journalist; “Joe Pera Talks With You” and we talk with him.

The museum marks its centennial with an exhibit of objects that were either acquired, published or exhibited in the year it was founded; are The Golden Globes legit or not?; “La Bohème aka The Hipsters” gets an ironic revival.

Mark Duplass on playing supporting roles in two projects tackling #metoo stories; Gugu Mbatha-Raw makes the case for seeing her buried movie "Fast Color"; the debate around black criticism of "Queen & Slim," a Netflix documentary exposes the toxic story of yoga guru Bikram Choudhury...

The 19-year-old filmmaker shot the movie while he was still in high school, and it won him awards at the Tribeca Film Festival; the U.S. Justice Dept. may allow studios to once again own movie theaters; the comedians who warm up TV studio audiences.

Bikram Choudhury made hot yoga an international phenomenon, but he allegedly assaulted a number of female students along the way, as told in a new documentary; should films by black artists be immune from criticism by black writers?; Beverly Hills High School had a pivotal role in "It's a Wonderful Life."

The influential event in Park City, Utah has built its reputation on films that advance racial diversity and gender parity; #PayUpHollywood takes the next step; the Sunset Studios in Hollywood mark their 100th anniversary.

The actor, writer, producer and director talks about his current roles for both TV and film; the Thanksgiving weekend box office kicked off the holiday season; the rapper JPEGMAFIA takes us inside his creative process.

Eddie Redmayne and Felicity Jones last acted together in “The Theory of Everything.” Now they’re back together for a film in which they play 19th Century balloonists; two companies behind the vinyl record renaissance.

The Frame is five years old! We revisit memorable interviews, strange locations, some laughs and a few good cries. Meryl Streep, Jordan Peele, Tom Hanks, Lizzo, Guillermo del Toro, Emma Thompson, Ava DuVernay, Zach Galifiankis, Karyn Kusama, Mark Bradford, Jon Robin Baitz and more...

Actor Adam Driver and writer/director Noah Baumbach reunite for the fourth time for "Marriage Story"; composer Gabriela Ortiz's latest commission for the L.A. Philharmonic.

Writer Lena Waithe and director Melina Matsoukas talk about how the traumatic deaths of unarmed black people by police officers shaped their movie's narrative; five years after the Sony hack, what's changed in Hollywood?