James Franco, the actor, author, Paly grad (class of ’96) and artist, is on back campus this week to oversee two new murals and an art show with paintings based on photos from his Paly yearbook. Franco, who named his first book of short stories, “Palo Alto” and also starred in the movie based on the book, continues to draw on his years at Paly to inspire his work as an actor, author and visual artist.
James Franco signs one of his new murals at Paly. Photo by Adele Bloch
Each black-and-white mural is based on a picture from Franco’s freshman yearbook in 1993. The first mural is a group shot of students reading the Campanile, Paly’s school newspaper and Franco’s high school publication, and the second is an action shot from a Paly football game.
“We decided to paint them on the Student Center because we were told that the building isn’t used as much as it used to be,” Kooris said. “We wanted to tie it in as something that was cool to look at and something that people could feel proud to have as a part of their campus.”
Photo from Franco’s 1993 yearbook (right) that inspired his mural at Paly (left) Photo of mural by Adele Bloch
While preparing his art show and film premiere for the grand opening of the Media Arts Center on Saturday, Oct. 18, James Franco sat down with the Paly Voice and the Paly Radio Club to discuss why Paly is still such a strong influence in his life and art. Oh and (spoiler alert) he also explains why he wants banana hands. Read on to learn more…
PV/PR: What’s it like coming back to Paly and seeing everything again?
James Franco: I love school, and I love being around academic environments. Woj [journalism teacher Esther Wojcicki] and I are even talking about a class that I might teach here in a year [at Paly]. I love it here. When I was in high school, I had a bit of a hard time, but I was just figuring out who I was. But now I love coming back.
Does Paly and your youth have a big influence on your work?
JF: It [high school] continues to inspire me. When I focus in on high school, the characters for me are much more alive in some ways than older characters. When you get older, you get a little bit more set in your ways. But when you’re young, your life is still ahead of you. You haven’t made all your most serious decisions about life yet and you’re discovering things for the time. I just find that those kind of characters are the most alive when you work with them.
What prompted you to paint a mural at Paly?
JF: I have done a lot of work with writing and artwork and even films that are inspired by teenagers or coming of age, and because I went to Paly, this is my main source of reference for this time. I just liked them [the photos in his freshman yearbook in 1993] because when they were in the yearbook, they were just photos of people going to school. But as time goes by, at least for me, my high school years became this weird mythical place. When I was a teenager, it seemed like I felt so much; everything seemed so important and there was so much pressure of all kinds and I was experiencing certain things for the first time. And so, the paintings, for me at least, captured that. Even though they’re just paintings of a football game or a volleyball game or The Campanile, to me it evokes the feelings of that time. … Instead of rebuilding a part of Paly, I could show the art work that was inspired by Paly, at Paly.
Students hang one of Franco’s paintings, inspired by his 1993 yearbook, at the Media and Arts Center. Photo by Adele Bloch
What first got you interested in being an actor and being a part of the entertainment industry?
JF: I’ve always loved movies and theater. When I was at Paly, I’d drive to San Francisco to see ACT [American Conservatory Theatre] productions. I’d see David Stratton do the “Tempest” there, and I think I saw “Phantom of the Opera” there, and “Chicago” and stuff like that. That was the only thing that was offered around here. And I’ve loved it for a long time, but I was very shy. And then in my senior year, I joined the drama class and I did two plays. … Then I went to UCLA. Once I was in LA and I saw that everyone was trying to get into the movies, so I decided to give it a shot.
Did any specific Paly teacher help shape your dreams and plans?
JF: Since Paly, I’ve had many very influential teachers. I’ve been very lucky and I’ve got to go to a lot of great great schools, so I’ve had tons of great professors. At Paly, Woj is a big influence.
Do you have any advice for Paly students?
JF: What I love about that class [The Campanile] is that you’re in school but you’re working on something that creates a product for the school. What that means is that you are becoming aware of your readers. You aren’t just writing for a grade – you’re writing to get people to read it. That creates a completely different kind of relationship between you and your work, and it’s on the way of creating a professional relationship with your work. So any time, if you want advice, any time you can have that situation or start to become aware of what it is you’re doing or what you will be doing when you write professionally and how you’re connecting to your audience is really valuable.
Would you rather have banana hands or banana feet?
JF: I think I use my hands more than my feet, so I’d have to do banana feet. If I got hungry, I can just eat my feet.
Franco’s art show and film premiere for the grand opening of the Media Arts Center will take place from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 18. Tickets are sold out.
A version of this article first appeared in the Paly Voice on October 16, 2014.
Very interesting article and certainly reenforces the influence Paly has on its students. Wish I could see the murals, but we are on the East Cost.
Schatze Thorp