In documentary films, being able to be a storytelling and embrace film as an art form - while being very clearly connected in trying to help make the world a better place - is really important to me.
Resilience is not just a complimentary individual quality, but something that is built. And you build it through a number of things in your life, part of it being social fabric.
The interesting thing about the ACE study, as it began in the 1990s, is that it was based on a very strict set of ten questions. But what is evolving from that is a better understanding what kind of experiences are beyond the ten questions, and what kind of stressors it generates, there are so many ways that children can be exposed to ongoing stress.
At the end of the day, the task I have is just like anyone else, to prove myself through my product or work. I've really found this to be true, the name advantage is a zero sum gain.
I think everyone understands when these cycles are disrupted, especially in terms of institutionalized poverty, it's always will be difficult - patterns are put into place, and certain behaviors keep getting repeated.
Our aim in the film ['Resilience'] is to make people understand that resilience is something you can create, build or develop, rather than just having as an inherent gift organically or thinking you are a special person. That's really important.
Many people have overcome that home situation simply by having at least one caring adult, whether a teacher, mentor or religious leader.
Dyslexia is a neurological issue, not a character flaw.
There needs to be the support and help around you, even when you may have an unhealthy home environment.
I think the macho mystique was far more a guiding principle in our Dad's generation than ours, the 'strong silent type' was much more common.
My grandfather was a prominent executive at Chevron (oil), and of course my father is a fairly radical and progressive environmentalist. But he was also a very active Democrat and pacifist. More importantly, he was one of the best storytellers I've ever met. I think that trait has been passed down the line, even to my kids.
I'm in full support of that technique [meditation] , and what David Lynch is doing. It's very important.
There is also a philosophy of less-is-more, and a little dignity that never hurt anybody. There are many qualities to admire about our father's generation.
When you have really solid biology and medical science at the core of an issue, it makes it much easier to identify what potential solutions may be.
It's also important that I, or [Producer] Karen Pritzker, also say that this film [ "Resilience: The Biology of Stress & the Science of Hope"] is not going to singlehandedly solve crime and poverty, or make big changes.
What my previous film 'Paper Tigers' have proven, is that it can point toward helpful tools for change.
When you introduce these tools into the community, they can be adopted and implemented at the local level - and the results have been powerful. We have to ask the questions, how do people survive in poverty and other challenges of traumatic childhoods? And, until we fix this underlying problems, how do we help people in the meantime?
Through what I have witnessed and documented, with proper interventions you can break those cycles. When I made the first film on this subject, 'Paper Tigers,' kids were going off the cliff. But then there was intervention, and they won't go off the cliff.
In middle age I've begun to embrace stress reducing behaviors. Just in doing yoga, for example, my health has improved dramatically.
The word 'resilience,' in our American culture is closely aligned with 'grit,' and that word implies a certain moral fiber that says you can survive and thrive in any adversity, because you are strong - but that message of strength is both disqualifying and problematic.
There is a wonderful documentary called 'A Room to Breathe,' where a school brought in a TM instructor, to try and establish a better classroom environment, and the results and transformations were profound. It's impossible to ignore, and we make some passing references in my film, but 'A Room to Breathe' is a closer look at just how powerful meditation can be.
I also think there is a wisdom and strength in that generation [of our parents], in terms of getting through difficult times, and there is a stoicism in the face of challenges that I greatly admire.
It doesn't take billions of dollars or complex medical technologies, and there doesn't have to be a dramatic upending to the current order. It's trying to change the mindset of people who deal with youth to have less judgement and more curiosity. That's asking a lot, emotionally it's asking people to step up and engage more. But what I often heard was that is easier for them to engage emotionally, than to just be angry and judgmental.
