The Frame

The Oscar-winning rapper, actor and producer talks about the importance of artists using their passions to bring about social change; music streaming is no longer the future of the industry, it is the industry.

A new documentary web series, "The Secret Lives of Muslims," aims for true and often humorous portrayals of American Muslims; Shane Smith says Vice is just like other big media companies, just "weirder" and "younger."

Writer-director Damien Chazelle talks about directing Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone in his musical love letter to L.A.; Beyoncé leads the pack with nine nominations as hip-hop, rap and R&B dominate the Grammy list; an annual holiday musical at the Falcon Theatre adapts pop music into Christmas carols.

After Nick Cave's son died in a tragic accident, he asked filmmaker Andrew Dominik to document the recording of his next album. The result: the haunting documentary, “One More Time With Feeling"; Emilie Friedlander of Vice Media says the fire-ravaged warehouse in Oakland that was home to artists is not a rarity; Sandra Bernhard on blending comedy, music and commentary in her new cabaret-style stage show.

Pharrell Williams is mainly known for his music career, but he's branched out into producing films and his latest is "Hidden Figures"; China’s increasing involvement in Hollywood is an issue both Democrats and Republicans actually agree on; The Secret City is a theater experience that's part cabaret, part joyful tent revival, and all about worshipping art;

Actress Emma Stone sings, tap dances and floats among the stars in the new movie musical, “La La Land"; film critics are making their best-of-the-year picks. But who are these critics and how do their biases play a role?; one movie poster artist has played a big role in pop culture — and many people consider his posters not ads, but art.

Actress Isabelle Huppert and writer/director Mia Hansen-Løve talk about their film, "Things To Come," about a middle-aged philosophy teacher who's forced to reconsider her life; we talk with filmmakers Jeff Orlowski ("Chasing Coral") and Marina Zenovich ("Water & Power") about their climate change docs screening at the Sundance Film Festival.

Alena Smith’s new play, “Icebergs,” tackles climate change, infertility, hate crimes, sexism and divorce — and it’s a comedy; actress Zooey Deschanel and singer/songwriter M. Ward, aka She & Him, have a new Christmas album; with critically-acclaimed films such as "Moonlight" and "Loving," the next Oscar nominations should be more diverse than in recent years.

Natalie Portman talks about playing Jacqueline Kennedy in "Jackie," which follows her in the days and weeks following the assassination of JFK; now that Fidel Castro is dead, how might things change for Cuba's artists?; Leo Matsuda's "Inner Workings" is a short animated Disney film that is screening with "Moana."

Actress Jenny Slate and her father talk about their book of stories inspired by their family life in Massachusetts; we break down the nominations for the Independent Spirit Awards; in the 1940s, a Silicon Valley start-up came up with an invention that revolutionized pop music.

From Stephen Colbert's late-night foray to Kim Jeong's new sitcom, we recap the news from the Television Critics Association press tour; Thundercat breaks down his song "Them Changes" in the latest Song Exploder podcast; Cheating death and finding love while making the documentary 'Meru'. The Log Lady is ready for the new "Twin Peaks."

F. Gary Gray dealt with drama both on and off set to get his vision right for "Straight Outta Compton"; comedian Jen Kirkman takes us backstage at Outside Lands Fest; it's got an Emmy nomination but what the hell is Acorn TV?

The new Broad Museum is getting ready for its close-up. We get a sneak peek at the work it takes to curate and install hundreds of piece of art; The spectacular demise of “Fantastic Four” offers a case study in what can go wrong when a studio rushes a film into production and clashes with its director; John Ridley and actor Richard Cabral on how life imitated art in the ABC series "American Crime."

The hip-hop producer hasn't released an album in 16 years, but he's back with a collection inspired by the movie, "Straight Outta Compton"; Roberto and Kim Benabib combine comedy with global conflict in HBO's “The Brink”; MuseIque makes orchestral music more accessible with eclectic programs.

Kacee Clanton is one of two performers who play rock icon Janis Joplin in a classic jukebox musical; Vice's content tends to skew male, so it's targeting women with a new online channel; Will Geer started producing theater in Topanga Canyon more than 60 years ago, and his family is keeping up the tradition.

Before he landed on "The Daily Show," Jon Stewart was the host of several short-lived shows; a lifelong fascination with Kahlil Gibran's "The Prophet" led to Salma Hayek turning the book into an animated film; composer Reinhold Heil provides the tense score for the Sundance Channel's "Deutschland 83"

British actress Bel Powley is decidedly American in "The Diary of a Teenage Girl"; the Eagle Rock Gospel Choir is not a church-based group, but they've got the spirit; LA's theater community mourns the passing of playwright Lynn Manning.

The musician (Meryl Streep) at the heart of screenwriter Diablo Cody's "Ricki and the Flash" represents the common female struggle to balance family and work; an electronic dance festival in L.A. County is marred by two suspected drug-related deaths; Jon Stewart has inspired a group of Iraqi comedians to create a "Daily Show"-like web series.

Bob Thiele leads The Forest Rangers, a band that was spawned by the "Sons of Anarchy" TV series; comedian Andy Kindler takes no prisoners when he gives his annual State of the Industry speech; a filmmaker is challenging the copyright claim to "Happy Birthday to You," which keeps the song out of many TV shows and movies.

When Marlon Brando died, he left hundreds of hours of himself on tape, which were culled for the documentary, "Listen to Me Marlon"; a 1965 gospel concert at L.A.'s Shrine Auditorium was special not only for its stars, but also because it was recorded — a rarity for its day; NBC Universal will reportedly invest $250 million in BuzzFeed's growing digital empire.

Five finalists were chosen to develop pilot scripts for a TV series that calls for a female engineer protagonist; Summer can be a great time to watch TV, if you know where to look; the singer Little Boots was once signed to Atlantic Records, but she decided having her own label is a better fit.

A comedy writer has sued Conan O'Brien, claiming his show stole jokes that were first posted on Twitter; on "Song Exploder," Ben Gibbard of Death Cab for Cutie dissects "El Dorado"; director James Ponsoldt was initially skeptical that a book about being on tour with writer David Foster Wallace could be a movie.