The Frame

We continue our series on how police are depicted on TV with the creators of “COPS,” the longest-running reality show in TV history. Creator John Langley tells us about the show’s genesis and why it continues to be so popular; the Latino Comics Expo is unofficially known as the “Latino Comic-Con"; Comedy Central says Larry Wilmore's show failed to gain traction with viewers.

From refugee athletes to individual profiles, Olympics mini-docs are a big part of the broadcast and have been since the 1970s. NBC Sports' Jimmy Roberts joins us from Rio where he's reporting on his 16th Olympics; Part 2 of our look inside the Sundance Directors Lab, where eight budding filmmakers are encouraged to take risks and seize the opportunity of a lifetime.

We visit the Sundance Director's Lab where Robert Redford and a group of industry pros mentor up and coming filmmakers. Variety's chief TV critic Maureen Ryan breaks down the CBS news coming out of the Television Critics Association press tour; Colburn Conservatory of Music graduates endure stressful mock auditions to prepare for the real thing.

Actress Taraji P. Henson opens up about the career path that led her to her Emmy-nominated role of Cookie Lyon on the hit Fox show, "Empire"; amid the bad reviews for "Suicide Squad," we look at the unsustainable — but enduring — Hollywood business model of taking big swings at expensive movies in hopes of finding a franchise.

In our #CopsOnTV series, writer-producer Cheo Hodari Coker reveals what he learned about the LAPD while producing the police drama, "Southland," and how that connected with his experiences as a black man; the bad news/good news of NBC's Olympic ecosystem: broadcast viewership is down, but online streaming is booming.

In the first of a continuing series of conversations, former "Law & Order: SVU" executive producer Neal Baer says studios and networks want police to be depicted as heroes; how soon will virtual reality become a big thing in entertainment?

Stuntwoman and "American Ninja Warrior" contestant Jessie Graff teaches host John Horn some tricks of her trade; the opening ceremony for the Summer Olympics has become a job for film directors; Aubrey Plaza's amateur basketball team, the Pistol Shrimps, has quite the following.

The comic actress' star-turn in "Ghostbusters" and another Emmy nod for "SNL" have her primed for bigger things; fans of the kids' show 'Doc McStuffins' are worried about the future of one of the few kids' shows with a black lead character; DanceSafe provides education and and even drug-testing at raves, but its hands are tied by a federal law.

Artist and animator Jorge Gutiérrez discusses the creative inspirations of the U.S.-Mexico border and the painting spree that led to his gallery show; HBO, Netflix and NBC face the press at the Television Critics Association; screenwriter, producer and former studio chief James Schamus makes his directorial debut with "Indignation."

Director Marc Osborne didn't want to make a straight-ahead adaptation of "The Little Prince," so he came up with a novel approach; "Equity" is the rare movie about Wall Street that stars and is made by women; Claire Boucher, aka Grimes, dissects her song, “Kill V. Maim.”

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.