I'm in full support of that technique [meditation] , and what David Lynch is doing. It's very important.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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 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.