The Treatment

Director 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.

Actor 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.'  

Writer-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.

More 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.

Actor Jeff Daniels has had a storied career in TV, film, and Broadway. He’s the winner of two Emmys for his roles in 'The Newsroom' and 'Godless,' has appeared in films as varied as 'Terms of Endearment,' 'Dumb and Dumber,' and 'The Martian,' and earned three Tony Award nominations for his work in the plays 'God of Carnage,' 'To Kill a Mockingbird,' and 'Blackbird.' To top it all off, he’s also an accomplished musician, with several folk and blues albums of original music. For his treat, he pays tribute to a live album recorded in 1970 by a musician on the precipice of mega-stardom.

The late and acclaimed director Rob Reiner created some of the most beloved films of the past four decades including 'Stand By Me,' 'When Harry Met Sally' and, of course, 'This is Spinal Tap.'  In the fall of 2025, Reiner joined The Treatment for an extensive conversation ahead of the release of what would be his final film: 'Spinal Tap II: The End Continues.'  'This is Spinal Tap' ushered in an era of mockumentaries starring Christopher Guest, Michael McKean, and Harry Shearer. They were masters of improv and accomplished musicians. Reiner spoke about the actors’ authentic musical talents, he revealed his character Marty DiBergi’s hilarious backstory, and he recounted the real life rockers who saw themselves in the fictional band.   This episode originally ran on September 13, 2025.

Phil Lord, filmmaker and writer behind The Lego Movie, and Chris Miller, director and writer known for their comedic collaborations, reminisce about a formative 1971 film. They trace how Harold and Maude bonded them in college. They discuss the movie’s odd charm, its songs, and how comedy and emotion can be balanced in storytelling.

Paul Fischer, author and cultural historian, explores the lives of Coppola, Lucas, and Spielberg. He recounts Lucas’s near-fatal crash and drive, the making and many lives of Apocalypse Now, and how collaborators and family shaped each director. Fischer also demythologizes their genius and traces Lucas’s transformation into an industry titan.

Amy Sherman-Palladino, creator of Gilmore Girls and The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, shares how Mel Brooks and Carl Reiner shaped her comedic rhythm. Dan Palladino, TV writer and longtime collaborator, recalls formative vinyl discoveries at LA’s Licorice Pizza and favorite records like Dylan and Frampton. They celebrate borscht belt humor, record-store lore, and how albums and comedy sketches influenced their storytelling.

Actor David Oyelowo doesn’t shy away from taking on complex, groundbreaking characters, but the timing has to be right. He portrayed Martin Luther King, Jr. in 'Selma,' the first Black U.S. marshal in the series 'Lawmen: Bass Reeves,' and took on the role of Othello almost a decade ago on stage. His latest role is in the film 'Newborn,' which is about a man struggling to reconnect with his family after years in solitary confinement. Oyelowo talks about what drew him to the project, the lack of general awareness around the impact of solitary confinement, and what made him finally say yes to playing Othello years ago.