In these deeply troubled times, a new and achingly beautiful film by award-winning Canadian filmmaker Velcrow Ripper is suggesting that we can find light amongst all the darkness. Fierce Light: When Spirit Meets Action is a documentary look at the spiritual activism movement that is slowly, but surely, revolutionizing the way we work for change. We caught up with (the surprisingly luminescent) Velcrow for a candid interview. We asked him about his new film, the spiritual trilogy he is working on and just what does spiritualism have to do with environmental activism.
Tell us about your new film.
Fierce Light: When Spirit Meets Action is my feature documentary (produced by Cher Hawrysh) that takes us deep into the heart of the exciting movement of spiritual activism that is exploding around the planet. In these times of raging wars and environmental collapse, people everywhere are wondering, "is change possible?" Sparked by what Gandhi called “soul force,” and Martin Luther King called “love in action,” millions are discovering the power of taking positive, peaceful action that comes from the heart, driven by the understanding that we're all in this together. Fierce Light captures this inspiring zeitgeist, which is being called the largest global movement in history.
I am becoming more and more overtly spiritually daring in our increasingly secular world. You might say I am "coming out of the closet" as a spiritual person.
All of my work is rooted in spirituality, and these days, I am becoming more and more overtly spiritually daring in our increasingly secular world. You might say I am "coming out of the closet" as a spiritual person. Fierce Light explores my quest to bring together the two touchstones of my life-spirituality, and activism, to merge them in fact. When that happens, a tremendous power is released.
Note that spirituality for me is distinct from religion. Religion can be, and often is, actually against spiritual principles, for example when it promotes hate, violence, fear or a sense of separation. For me, spirituality must first and foremost be rooted in love. The deep, universal love that is all encompassing and tremendously powerful, and empowering.
How does spirituality relate to the environment?
One of my favorite definitions of spirituality – and there are many – is interconnectedness. This is the idea that everything in the universe is connected to everything else – we are all part of a vast system of interconnected systems. This is clearly understood today in the realm of science – for example, a forest is a vast and intricate web of life, woven together by hundreds of miles of “Microrhyzal Fungi”. There is no separation. When we truly realize that, on a personal level, that is a spiritual breakthrough, and can lead to a visceral sense of oneness with all of creation. When that awareness happens, then to destroy the environment is in fact to destroy ourselves.
How does spirituality relate to activism?
Spirituality relates to everything. It’s the current, the electricity, the chutzpa. When it comes to activism, it’s a very natural fit, an essential element. It elevates our activism to the level of a spiritual practice, gives us power and courage, helps to avoid burn out or fall into the self defeating traps of “us vs. them” or feeling holier than thou because we are trying to save the world and you aren’t. It allows us the insight to come from a place of interconnectedness and compassion.
Compassion is one of the greatest tools in our spiritual toolkit.
What role does compassion play in activism?
Compassion is one of the greatest tools in our spiritual toolkit. With compassion, every conflict brings with it the opportunity for growth, transformation, instead of just further polarization. Look into your adversary’s heart, not their ego, and you will find a vulnerable human being, just like yourself. This goes for riot cops too. When we approach change-making in a way in which our means is consistent with our ends, then we cannot lose. We’ve already won – we’re creating another world right now, not deferring it to the day we finally save this forest or that watershed. We are living the change, being the change. And the more of us that do that, the more that new world will become our shared reality.
What role does compassion play with environment work?
Compassion is what inspires us to work for change in the first place –be it compassion for the planet, or compassion for future generations, or even compassion for ourselves. We all have to live in this place, and if it’s a toxic environment, a degraded environment, a place without the wonder and sustainability of a vast diversity of species co-existing in harmony, then we all suffer. Compassion is when we take our personal pain and recognize that others – including other species – must share this same experience. We step into their shoes, and then it becomes clear that saving the environment is not just something we do because we “should” – we do want to save the environment out of a deeper place, a more intrinsic place, a place of (dare I say it!) love.
Is spirituality missing from the environmental movement?
Spirituality is missing from our society as a whole. We are still in a place of being reactive about the old, repressive models of spirituality, so that secularism has become the new religion. When we get beyond that place, we can operate from a place of choice – what does our being really need, what makes us feel good, what makes others feel good. Not on a surface, materialistic selfish level, but on a deeper level – a soul level. When you can get in touch with your deepest self, and begin operating from there, all your activities take on much greater meaning.
It is a tremendous time to be alive, a time of tremendous possibility.
Can we be 'good' activists without compassion?
We can be effective tactically with huge egos and an absolute disregard for humanity, no doubt about it. There have been many eco-activists who seem to have a hate on for humanity. But I think we can do better than that – we can have an integral worldview in which we recognize that humans are part of the natural world too.
But there is too much at stake now, this is it folks – we are at the crossroads. It is a tremendous time to be alive, a time of tremendous possibility.
Is Fierce Light an environmental film?
Yes, Fierce Light is an environmental film, as well as a humanist film. It is an integral film, an integrated film, that doesn’t prioritize one issue over another – this is part of the new paradigm of spiritual politics that is emerging. There are explicitly environmental stories in the film as well – one of the main through lines is the struggle to save South Central Farms, the largest urban garden in North America. And some of our characters are committed spiritual environmentalists – people like Julia Butterfly Hill, Joanna Macy, Daryl Hannah and Van Jones.
Are you making a trilogy of spiritual films?
I am indeed! The Fierce Light Trilogy began with Scared Sacred, my feature documentary about the search for hope in the ground zeroes of the world. It is about transforming crisis into opportunity, something we really need to do in today’s world of turmoil. Fierce Light: When Spirit Meets Action is about the path of the spiritual warrior, the process of resistance and change making. The last film in the trilogy will be called Evolve Dissolve: Another World Is Here, and it’s about the evolution of the planet, and lived examples of Another World today, stories of ecotopias and harmonious, sustainable, inspiring communities and visionaries, around the world. Another world is not only possible; it’s being lived, right now!
Any plans for the future?
I plan to be part of the solution, always, and will continue doing everything I can to help spread the fierce light in the world. Fierce Light Films has begun shooting another feature documentary, called Redvolution: Dare to Disturb the Universe, which is about becoming your own spiritual super hero. I’m co-directing it with Spiritual Cowgirl, Sera Beak, a Harvard trained scholar of comparative mysticism who is becoming an important voice for a new generation of spiritual seekers. It’s going to be the world’s first funny sexy badass spiritual movie. Finally, a spiritually focused movie that allows us to have a sense of humor, while saving the world! We’re calling it “The Secret” meets “Buffy the Vampire Slayer” in a dark alley. Naked. Cher Hawrysh is producing this one too, and we’re all very excited about it.
I’m also launching a new blog that explores my take on spirituality, called FierceLove.org. It’s so new that you might be the first to visit, so if you like what you see, hang around, come back, post some comments and link to it.
Where can people see/find your film?
Keep an eye on our website, sign up for the mailing list, and we’ll let you know when it’s coming to a theatre near you. We just had our premiere at the Vancouver International Film Festival, to a sold out 700 seat theatre. We received a long uproarious standing ovation, and at the end of the festival received two awards – a special jury prize, and an audience award. This is cool, because it means that both the critics as well as the people are responding to the film.
Fierce Light will be touring the festivals first – next up is the Amsterdam International Documentary Festival at the end of November, then it will be in movie theatres in the spring of 2009, followed by a DVD release then television. We’ll also be organizing a number of Fierce Light conferences and events, and I’ll be doing a series of Fierce Light Workshops.
It takes us all to change the world!
Show/Hide comment form
