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.

The Wooster Group’s latest stage show, “The Town Hall Affair,” re-creates an infamous 1971 public debate about feminism moderated by – of all people – the chauvinistic writer Norman Mailer. Now on stage at the REDCAT in downtown Los Angeles, the show has resonance in an era when a presidential candidate can get away with ugly talk about women and millions of women took to the streets on the day after his inauguration.

Film producers Bonnie Curtis and Julie Lynn have made several small budget, character-driven movies together including “Albert Nobbs” with Glenn Close and “Last Days in the Desert” with Ewan McGregor. But "Life" is completely different. They talk with The Frame about managing a bigger budget –with special effects and zero gravity– and what makes their partnership work.

Caro's latest film is “The Zookeeper’s Wife," but her next project, the live-action version of “Mulan,” will make her only the 4th woman to have a budget over $100 million; The Writer’s Guild is negotiating its next contract, and there has been talk of a strike over wages for TV writers; children’s book author/illustrator Claire Keane worked with her Disney animator father on a story about Rapunzel that is being turned into a TV series.

"The Americans" creator Joe Weisberg and fellow showrunner Joel Fields talk about creating their 1980's Russian espionage show in the era of Russian hacking. The two are joined by director Chris Long– who shot some of the show in Moscow– to talk about creating a family drama that's also a secret agent story.

The 1991 Disney animated film "Beauty and the Beast," is considered by many to be a classic. But the man behind the lyrics of some of our favorite songs never got to see the final film. We put together this oral history/remembrance of his life and legacy; “Good Grief" is a new play by LA-based playwright Ngozi Anyanwu that can help people cope with their own losses; Drake’s new album "More Life” was the soundtrack to this past weekend. Literally.

Deborah Borda is leaving her post as CEO of the L.A. Philharmonic to run the N.Y. Philharmonic; filmmaker Taylor Hackford recalls making his 1987 documentary about Chuck Berry; Discostan is a monthly club night that features Middle Eastern music.

A new Japanese American National Museum (JANM) exhibit remembers the dark history of legalized discrimination in the US. Classical music composer Julia Adolphe is a rising star with a new work at the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra. Director Sydney Freeland discusses her coming-of-age movie "Deidra & Laney Rob a Train."

What does President Trump's budget proposal to eliminate the NEA, NEH and CPB actually mean? New York Magazine art critic Jerry Saltz finds hope in the political messages and diverse voices at the Whitney Biennal. And director Ferne Pearlstein and Holocaust survivor Renee Firestone discuss the new documentary "The Last Laugh."

LA Phil chief Deborah Borda will depart to head the NY philharmonic. She leaves behind a flourishing institution, a happy orchestra, and a charismatic artistic director. Documentarian Marina Zenovich tries to uncover who owns California's water supply in "Water & Power: A California Heist." And filmmaker Ritesh Batra goes from "The Lunchbox" to "The Sense of an Ending."

Misha Green, co-creator of the WGN series "Underground," talks about how characters like Harriet Tubman are real-life superheroes and how she's sometimes mistaken for an assistant on set; Goldenvoice—the promoters behind Coachella, Stagecoach and Desert Trip—bring their latest fest to Pasadena, called Arroyo Seco Weekend.

Filmmaker Danny Boyle has reunited with the original cast of his 1996 movie "Trainspotting" to find out where those drug-addled young adults are now that they're in full-blown adulthood; Cuban Singer Daymé Arocena releases a new album with a little help from friends in LA; The Writers Guild of America starts contract talks, could it lead to a strike?

Walt Disney’s creative genius and his personal dark side are explored in the Philip Glass opera, “The Perfect American”; religious scholar Reza Aslan talks about his new CNN series, “Believer,” in which he focuses on fringe elements of certain religions; Mohsen Namjoo revives the pre-revolution rock music of his native Iran.