Mr. Durand, an English teacher at AHS, has got to be one of the most interesting teachers here on campus. Pushing past his love for reading and writing, he also has a strong interest in film. It seems as if his creativity is never-ending.
Where did your interest in English/creative writing come from?
I always grew up telling stories. It was something that always interested me. I would write little stories for my friends. When I was younger I would just draw pictures that told some sort of story. Reading was a little bit more difficult for me. I struggled with that a lot and would listen to audiobooks but as I got into high school and then eventually college I realized that I had to pick that up more so I developed a strong passion for reading through different classes as I strengthened my reading ability.
How did you become an English teacher?
A lot of my favorite high school teachers were English teachers. A lot of characters I felt drawn to in TV shows and movies, looking back on it, were English teachers, but I kind of just fell into it if I’m being honest. It wasn’t something I was really too interested in. I really like reading and writing and stuff like that but I kind of fought being a teacher for a while and then I was like no I really like analyzing stuff and I have such a fond memory for my English teachers. I want to have the kids understand and love English as much as I do.
What is your favorite book and why?
If you had asked me a week ago it would have been a different answer, but I just re-read Into the Wild by Jon Krakauer. I really love that book because it’s talking about, basically in a nutshell, how it’s important to take risks in life, and how even if it can be wrong it’s still nice to take those risks.
I know you’re involved in the film industry; what do you do?
I produce and direct short films. So producing is either putting money towards someone else’s production and backing them in that way or giving them the equipment they need, and then directing, I’ll direct short films that other people wrote or that I wrote.
What is a project you’ve worked on?
The last thing we just did that we filmed over at Canon Coffee was a short film called After All These Years. It’s about a guy who sees his old high school girlfriend after a number of years and he’s debating whether or not to talk to her. It’s on YouTube.
With that being said, what is your favorite movie and why?
My favorite movie is called Almost Famous by Cameron Crowe. It takes place in the 1970’s and it’s about this kid who really loves rock music. He gets the chance to travel with the rock band on the road and write an article about them for Rolling Stone Magazine. I think it’s such a great movie telling a coming-of-age story and talking about pursuing things you really love.
What is your favorite aspect of creating stories or short films, etc?
My favorite thing about creating anything is collaborating with people. I really like hands-on working with other people. I even like it if I just send them the story and they tell me it’s bad. I like hearing feedback from other people and just having that camaraderie among artists.
Is there any character from a movie or book that you relate to?
I don’t know if I relate to anyone too much. One of my favorite characters, which is kind of corny, is Jack Dawson—Leonardo DiCaprio’s character in Titanic. It’s kind of the same thing that I’ve been saying, which is that he lives his life to the fullest and takes any chance that he can get. I really like that character and kind of see some aspects of him that I see myself in.
