What are you reading?

"Penguin Gandhi Reader," edited by Rudrangshu Mukherjee.

What do you like about it?

I think it helps me as a person grow into understanding the practical means to apply peace in my life and in my community, as well as a nonviolent approach to peace. I guess it helps me understand the alternatives to where the world is now and how to attain that.

How do individuals walk this alternate path?

I think one of the main things with Gandhi is he talked about self-government, and in order to be self-governed one has to be self-reliant, and in order to be self-reliant it really starts from the basic necessities of life. It means growing your own food, making our own clothes, and building our own shelters; and when you think of that you think of sustainability, you think of how a population can do that under limited resources. But I think in essence those principles that he brings to the table really bring community together for a common purpose.

Do his teachings connect with your approach to life and work, living off the land in Volcano, and choosing only film projects that inspire you?

Absolutely. It's a definite learning curve and a stripping away in my own life of things that are unnecessary and getting to the core of that. I think the lifestyle itself, following Gandhi's principles, benefits everybody and everything — not just humans but the nature that surrounds you, the microorganisms in the ground and all the plants, as well as animals. I believe it's a holistic perspective on living a life that's pono.