The Frame

Rankine, whose poetry has examined everyday racism in America, and Wolfe, whose music addresses issues of the American worker, were both named MacArthur Foundation fellows; as the Fall TV season launches, we visit with producer Betsy Beers at Shondaland, one of the most successful companies in the industry.

Diavolo Dance Theatre is reinventing modern dance by combing architecture and wildly physical choreography; media critics have been piling on NBC for going soft on the GOP nominee, and now late night host Samantha Bee has joined the fray; Richard Nelson keeps his election-themed plays current by writing until the last minute.

The new documentary, “The Lovers and the Despot,” tells the true story of what happened in 1978 when Kim Jong-il ordered the kidnapping of a filmmaking couple from South Korea to jumpstart North Korea's movie industry; William Bell has revived the classic Stax sound; a new report shows that the music business is actually making money in the streaming age.

Playwright and performer Lucy Alibar draws on her Southern childhood for “Throw Me on the Burnpile and Light Me Up"; Aziz Ansari and Alan Yang, who won a writing Emmy for "Master of None," talk about their approach to diversity; the Toronto International Film Festival kicked off a lot of Academy Award talk.

Kent McCord of the 1960-70s TV cop show, "Adam-12," which was produced in partnership with the LAPD. McCord says a show about cops who aren't "edgy" wouldn't sell in today's TV business; In advance of TV's big awards night, we discuss what goes into an Emmy campaign, and how valuable is a nomination or a win in this era of "too much TV"?

Cheo Hodari Coker, creator and showrunner of the Netflix series "Luke Cage," unpacks the idea of building a show around a superhero who also happens to be a "bullet-proof black man" in a hoodie; Can Pandora and Amazon be the next disruptors in the streaming music space? They hope so.

The documentary "Audrie & Daisy" examines the sexual assault and cyber-shaming of two teen girls; with its third album, the band Local Natives remains entrenched in Silver Lake's indie rock scene; a group of songwriters is challenging the Dept. of Justice's control over royalty rates.

How do unconscious biases affect hiring practices in Hollywood? To dig deeper into this issue, Cathy Schulman (Oscar-winning producer/Women In Film) and Judith Williams (Global Head of Diversity at Dropbox) put Frame host John Horn to the test as if he's a studio executive; In 2005 Jackie Lopez co-founded the hip hop troupe "Versa Style" to teach kids not only how to dance but the cultural history behind hip hop.

"Kicks" filmmakers discuss how being outsiders who didn't fit society's views of manhood fueled the making of their lyrical coming-of-age drama; A new documentary explores why Brad Bird's 1999 animated film "The Iron Giant" was a critical darling, but a box office bomb; Inside Nate Parker's "The Birth of a Nation" press conference at TIFF; Can you scream like Nicholas Cage?

Every August, cultural festivals take over the Scottish city of Edinburgh with thousands of performances taking place day and night. This year The Frame host John Horn immersed himself in shows and brings an audio postcard of his creative excursion; TV reporter Whitney Friedlander joins us to preview some new and returning television shows that are worthy of our time and DVR space this fall.

Jill Soloway on the making of the "musicale finale" of "Transparent" — without actor Jeffrey Tambor; a group of up-and-coming film composers and indie directors convene at Skywalker Ranch for some intensive collaboration.

Jim Gaffigan is best known for his comedy, but can play a mean child kidnapper too; what the retirement of the head of the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame could mean for overlooked artists; singer/songwriter Lupita Infante carries on her grandfather's legacy.

The LA-based contemporary dance company BodyTraffic debuts new works; what The Black Keys concert fiasco says about the live music industry; how the prolific musician Alex G transforms his voice.

Executive producers Susannah Grant and Sarah Timberman on their Netflix adaptation of a true story about the search for a serial rapist; concerns in Aurora, Colorado about the themes in "Joker"; the band Trashcan Sinatras.

The actress talks about playing the iconic singer and actress Judy Garland; Emmys were a big night for Phoebe Waller-Bridge, not so good for the broadcast networks; our resident "Downton Abbey" nerds revel in their big weekend.

Television is exploding and it’s time to celebrate! Join The Frame's John Horn and L.A. Times TV critic Lorraine Ali as they break down the year in television and this year's Emmy-worthy shows.

Documentary filmmaker Irene Taylor Brodsky turns the camera on her 11-year-son and his effort to learn Beethoven's composition; Hollywood struggles to strike the right note of climate urgency; how sound becomes a character in the film, "The Sound of Silence."

The writer/director of the hit film talks about the making of the movie, and life as a woman director in Hollywood; "Bandersnatch" is not your average TV movie.

In the animated series from the people behind “Bojack Horseman” (Raphael Bob-Waksburg and Kate Purdy), there’s no horse, but there’s still an existential crisis; the play Mike Pesca on SNL's on- again, off-again casting of Shane Gillis; "American Mariachi" is a soundtrack for Mexican-American life.

The director and co-writer of the space epic talks about his new film, which stars Brad Pitt as an astronaut on a perilous mission; NBC announces plans for its streaming service, which will be called Peacock; Rhiannon Giddens talks about her affinity for country music.

The singer and songwriter has a new album and a new movie score coming up, plus a documentary about his time with The Band; Variety film critic Peter Debruge wraps up the Toronto International Film Festival.

Nick Offerman goes on tour; NYT TV critic deconstructs Donald Trump's TV character; Gay of Thrones and The Handmaid's Tale costumer go for Creative Arts Emmys; La Santa Cecilia plays in El Paso and "This Close" is a TV show created by and starring deaf people.