television

From Fargo to Hannibal, this is a golden age for TV music.

Whether sparse and tense, or lavish and operatic, TV shows now have scores as impressive as their cinematic counterparts. We talk to the composers behind some of the best.

Television is having a moment. From Mad Men and True Detectiveto House of Cards and Boardwalk Empire, the small screen is no longer the last refuge of the washed-up stars of the silver screen, but is instead the first choice for Hollywood’s high-profile directors, actors and writers.

Jenji Kohan On Orange Is The New Black And Why Diversity Should Be The 'New Normal'.

"It was horrible, horrible," says Jenji Kohan, the creator, showrunner, writer, and executive producer of Orange is the New Black. The death of Poussey Washington (Samira Wiley) at the end of the show's last season left fans reeling, but the writers, too. "You fall in love with these characters, so it's very painful [to kill them]," says Kohan. "It's also painful because we have some fantastic actors and you want these people to deliver your stuff.... I miss Samira and I miss Poussey."

Transparent’s First Trans Director on Telling His Story Through Maura Pfefferman.

Jill Soloway wanted to shake things up on the set of Transparent, because it had always been important for her that trans directors be able tell their own stories, and she wanted to make her hit show reflect that.

“Directing is a great privilege. It’s a privilege to share your vision of the world with, well, the world,” said Soloway, the creator of Amazon’s Transparent. “For too long the white cis male gaze has dominated. But we are in this necessary and exciting moment, where we are giving diverse voices access—to a camera, the director's chair, the script—and helping to pass that privilege on.”

Does the Bachelor Franchise Emotionally Exploit Its Contestants?

On Aug. 14, 2013, Gia Allemand, a New Orleans-based 29-year-old swimsuit model and former contestant on ABC's reality show The Bachelor, called her mother, Donna Micheletti, to say good-bye. In a state of panic and dread, Micheletti called Allemand's boyfriend, NBA player Ryan Anderson. He rushed to Allemand's apartment, where he found her unconscious, a vacuum cleaner cord wrapped around her neck. Micheletti immediately flew to New Orleans; Allemand was pronounced brain-dead at the hospital, and Micheletti made the decision to take her off life support. "She said she was so tired of being hurt," Micheletti told Dr. Phil a few months later.

The Women Of GLOW Are Changing Television, One Body Slam At A Time.

In the opening moments of the new dramedy GLOW, the camera focuses on Alison Brie, sporting permed '80s hair, as she auditions for an acting job. Her eyes, rapt with emotion, fill with tears. She shakes her head. "I'm sorry, there just aren't many parts like this for women." GLOW may be set three decades ago, when up-and-coming actresses were relegated to the sidelines and cast as secretaries, love interests, or secretaries-turned-love interests, but that sentiment could be muttered by any actress looking to make it through today's resoundingly unequal entertainment industry. But that tide is turning, slowly but surely, thanks to producers and creators like Shonda Rhimes, Jill Soloway, Jenji Kohan, and, most recently, Liz Flahive and Carly Mensch, the creators and showrunners of GLOW, executive produced by Kohan and premiering Friday on Netflix.