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.

Many people have overcome that home situation simply by having at least one caring adult, whether a teacher, mentor or religious leader.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.