Podcast
The Treatment
Hosted by KCRW · EN
The Treatment is a compelling listen to the vital conversations about the catalysts of creative inspiration. Following some of the most interesting, influential, and crossover creators in the world of entertainment, fashion, sports, and the arts, we hear from tastemakers who are the very fabric that forms popular culture.
46episodes
Episodes
Newest firstAll episodes
The Treat: Tadashi Nakamura
Yesterday00:05:52Tap to summarizeFilmmaker Tadashi Nakamura’s newest film 'Third Act' follows his father, lauded director Robert A. Nakamura, as he looks back over his life and career while dealing with a recent diagnosis of Parkinson’s disease. For his treat, SoCal native Tadashi celebrates a documentary that looked at the birth of a local culture and did it with style.
Transcribe →RZA on the three things films should do
4d ago00:23:32Tap to summarizeRZA may be the ultimate multi-hyphenate. He’s a founding member of the groundbreaking hip hop group Wu-Tang Clan and is considered one of the greatest hip hop producers ever. He’s also a versatile actor, having appeared in films including 'Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai,' 'Coffee and Cigarettes,' and 'Minions: The Rise of Gru.' And he is a director of films including 'The Man with the Iron Fists' and 'Cut Throat City.' His latest film as director is 'One Spoon of Chocolate,' starring Shameik Moore and presented by Quentin Tarantino. The film follows a veteran and ex-convict looking for a fresh start in a small town. RZA spoke to Elvis at the 2025 Tribeca Film Festival where his film premiered. He talks about his growing confidence as a director, collaborating with Moore, and the three things he believes each film should do.
Transcribe →The Treat: Thierry Frémaux
1w ago00:06:43Tap to summarizeThe Cannes Film Festival recently wrapped up its 79th year celebrating films from around the world. Prior to the festival, its director Thierry Frémaux premiered his own film, 'Lumière le Cinéma!,' a look at the birth of cinema through the Lumière Brothers and their invention of the cinematograph. It’s now streaming on the Criterion Channel. For his treat, Frémaux celebrates an American singer-songwriter whose music doesn’t shy away from protesting the country he calls home.
Transcribe →How ‘Project Hail Mary’ captured the spectacle of space
2w ago00:23:32Tap to summarizeDirecting duo Phil Lord and Chris Miller got their start in animated TV as co-creators of the series 'Clone High.' Their partnership continued on the big screen with 'Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs,' 'The Lego Movie,' and '21 Jump Street.' Their latest is the adaptation of the Andy Weir sci-fi novel 'Project Hail Mary,' starring Ryan Gosling. Lord and Miller talk about why this movie was the hardest project they've taken on, what the film has in common with 'The Lego Movie,' and why sometimes the most subversive thing they do in a project is have people get along. Note: this interview originally aired on March 20, 2026
Transcribe →The Treat: Cynthia Erivo
2w ago00:06:03Tap to summarizeGrammy, Emmy, and Tony-winning actress and singer Cynthia Erivo continues to conquer stage and screen. She stepped back into Elphaba’s shoes (and cape and hat) in the blockbuster musical 'Wicked: For Good' last year. Now, she’s finishing up a run in a one-woman adaptation of 'Dracula' in London’s West End. For her treat, she celebrates Nina Simone’s iconic take of the song “I’m Feeling Good.” Erivo cites the “color” and imperfections of Simone’s singing as inspiration for her own version of the song, which, she says, teaches her something new every time she sings it.
Transcribe →Jeremy O. Harris and Pete Ohs on casting Charli XCX in 'Erupcja'
3w ago00:23:32Tap to summarizeTony nominated playwright Jeremy O. Harris and director Pete Ohs are frequent collaborators. Ohs worked on a documentary about Harris’ acclaimed and controversial 'Slave Play' and Harris starred in Ohs’ film 'The True Beauty of Being Bitten by a Tick.' Their latest collaboration is the film 'Erupcja,' starring pop star Charli XCX in a role far removed from her on stage persona. 'Erupcja' was filmed in Poland without a traditional script, and the actors all brought their own ideas to the film. Ohs and Harris tell Elvis how they got Charli XCX to be in the film, why Ohs likes to work without a script, and the origin of the film's Polish title.
Transcribe →The Treat: India Donaldson
3w ago00:05:44Tap to summarizeDirector India Donaldson’s 2024 feature film debut 'Good One' is deceptively simple: a teenager, her father, and her father’s friend go camping in upstate New York. But the film goes into an unexpected direction, telling its story with tension and subtlety. For her treat, she cites a 2003 sculpture by the visual artist Shimabuku, whose simplicity evokes unabashed joy.
Transcribe →Simon Helberg on the absurdity of ‘The Audacity’
4w ago00:23:32Tap to summarizeActor Simon Helberg is no stranger to playing highly intelligent characters with a few social shortcomings. He’s best known for his comedic turn as the brilliant, but awkward engineer Howard Wolowitz on the CBS sitcom 'The Big Bang Theory,' which ran for 12 seasons. He’s also appeared in films including 'Old School,' 'A Serious Man,' and 'Florence Foster Jenkins,' for which he received a Golden Globe nomination. His latest role is as Martin Phister in the AMC series 'The Audacity.' Phister is a tech genius who can’t connect with his own family. Helberg talks about getting into the psyche of someone highly intelligent and neurodivergent, why some tech titans believe they are actually saving the world, and he reveals what he thinks when he catches himself on 'The Big Bang Theory.'
Transcribe →The Treat: BenDavid Grabinski
4w ago00:06:05Tap to summarizeWriter-director BenDavid Grabinski’s newest film, the crime caper 'Mike & Nick & Nick & Alice,' is in part an homage to the independent films of the ‘70s. For his treat, he pays tribute to a recent Broadway revival starring two performers known for going back in time and having a most excellent adventure.
Transcribe →Cannes Chief Thierry Frémaux on the origins of filmmaking in ‘Lumière, le Cinema!’
May 100:23:32Tap to summarizeMore than 125 years ago, brothers Louis and Auguste Lumière invented the cinematograph, a precursor to the movie camera. Their contributions to modern filmmaking are enshrined at the Institute Lumière in France. As a scholar of film, Thierry Frémaux, director of the Institute Lumière and Cannes Film Festival, was drawn to telling the Lumière brothers’ story. His first film as director is 'Lumière, le Cinema!,' in which he narrates a series of shorts created by the Lumière brothers and explains the significance of their invention. Frémaux talks to Elvis about why he wanted to tell this story, why the Lumière brothers' invention of the cinematograph was so consequential, and how the films they created are still relevant today.
Transcribe →