Hi! My name is Dan, I'm 17 and I live in Bucharest, Romania where I also go to high school. It's one of the best high schools in our country. I'm now entering 11th grade and I also work hard to apply in two years to a very famous film school in USA, as I am keen on moviemaking and I want to become a film director. Since I was 15, I have organised what is now the biggest and most complex student film crew so far and we have done a few productions (including a comedy series), always trying to exceed myself (slowly working to become my dream come true).
Our school year starts in september and it ends in june, before summer vacation. Until mid april, last year everything went well. Me and my crew (which was 45 members - actors, script writers, camera operators, editors - from all grades in our school) were having fun and never had problems with our teachers. I always made sure that my friends were focusing on school, even though the Romanian system of education is a national disaster that became just another politics matter. As far as I know, all the school principals in Bucharest are party members and change sides whenever they can to hold on to their position at work. Other than that, nothing matters. Teachers are paid very poor and they don't care about their students. It's a total mess and some of them are undoubtedly mentally ill or very old and powerless (like our physics teacher, who was officially retired in 1997 but still works at the age of 79 with two hearing aids in each ear). That's not the point. The problem is Romania doesn't have enough teachers to replace them.
So in this huge circle of poor education even in one of the most prestigious institutions, we created an alternative with our film crew and every weekend and holiday, we did something we enjoyed. First, in the 9th grade, I got on very well with our secondary principal (who is a female romanian language teacher). She let me organise a small video studio in the school's attic, where the upcoming "school's film crew" and I could film whenever we needed. I was always closer to her more than I was with my class master (our social sciences teacher), who I appreciated very much in the beginning, but then me, and recently my parents, realised what a madwoman she is. You may think I am unrightly judging grown ups, but if somebody would see the reality, I'm sure he would understand immediately. It's interesting the fact that my teacher is very close to the secondary principal (kind of like her right hand). My teacher never supported me with my dream, she would do anything to give me as a bad example in front of the class and discriminate me. That's something that my classmates noticed before I did. For instance, let me give you an example. We have a short film contest every year in our school about how we see through our eyes, but in fact everything is very controled so that the principals are praised (everybody complains about very much propaganda, but if we say a word, we are threatened to be thrown out of school or ”go some place where we are supported”). At this film contest, I helped my class to get the award for the best film and all the appreciation I got from my teacher was that ”the film was too long”. In the last few weeks of the 9th grade she asked me if I'm going on a school trip (coincidently - with all of my arrogant and alcoholic classmates with whom I don't get along ) and my natural instinct was to simply ask if it was mandatory. I knew that from that moment she hated me, even though she doesn't really care about the group being united or whatever. I think that you can't force compatibility, and if there it was to be one, we would have built it during one full year. But no. Several days later, she told me that she thinks "I am hiding my lack of civility behind a false respect, occidental-type." She called my parents and she told them what a smug I am, the "black sheep of the community". These are all the words of a psychology teacher... Until the last day of school, she made my life a nightmare. From past generations of her students, I have heard that she had a problem with each of the more special students, the ones who had a word to say, that some are now TV hosts or journalists. But I was never bold and always watched on my business. And I think that's what made her most furious. One year later, everything was like forgotten. I want to mention that our school has two more extracurricular clubs, a theatre crew and an artistic department (music/dance). Each of these groups asked for principal permission many times during the year to participate at different shows and even rehearsals during our school schedule (6-7 hours/day after which I come home and ask myself "what have I learned today that I will remember in 5, 10, 20, 30 years?) We learn chemestry without tools, physics without experiments and so on. But anyway, they could have had a show before all the classes, and they would miss all day from school, and nobody would have said anything, because they literally kiss the principals's asses. I could never do that. I sit and think many times that ghosts of communism still remain among us on every structure level of our communities, even in education. All I had wanted until then in one full year was one friday when me and a few crew colleagues could film some of the scenes for the second episode of the comedy series, because we were very late on schedule. I got the permission but when we got back to pack our things, the main principal, a very noisy man, shouted to us that we're doing too many activities and it's time for school and learning, event though our grades were very good and we had no unpermitted absences, at least not because the film activities. The secondary principal, who offered me the permission, acted like she had no clue. I've later found out that she did this so she wouldn't argue with her boss, or else, losing the job for just protecting some group of teenagers. After that, I was not allowed to enter the high school during weekends, not even to take my lights from the attic studio back, for which I was the one who paid. During a presentation for the next year's freshmen, there were more than 300 current and future students in the building and I was the only one who was not allowed to get in. I had to sneak in because I was invited to hold a speech, and I had to keep my voice down so that the principals could not hear me. It was terrible and I felt like a vandal and a criminal. But this thing happened at the end of the year, after the following strange event:
The secondary principal was having divorce problems during that time, but that doesn't excuse her for anything. From the person with whom I got along most, she became my worst fear, along with my class teacher. They did not agree with anything I did. Because it's my dream and I will make a living out of it, of course I continued the activity outside the school, not implicating it in anything. We were in june, two weeks apart from our biggest project, a cinema projection where we presented everyting we had done so far - movies, episodes and a lot of thematic videos - in a movie theatre. I was making TV appereances, radio interviews and newspapers articles were written, everything in honour of our high school, but nothing mattered to the prinicpals or my teacher. Although it was a real succes, none of them showed up to support us. That day, I didn't know what was coming for me. I was ready for the biggest event we had. I also had to do dance rehearsals, as I am a dancer and we had an artistic moment before the movies. The secondary principal agreed a few days earlier to let us, the students that organised the cinema event, with the help of a popular cinematographic association with which we are collaborating, to miss from the day classes so that we could set everything up. It was true that we were many, 30 at number from all over the school, but we had to. It was a huge event. That morning, when a friend of mine brought the paper to the principal so that we could sign everything formally, I found out that the main principal went nuts when he saw the students list and the secondary principal went immediately on his side. I was urgently called to school to give an explanation for my "rebellion" and the fact that "I organise the school after my own desire". That's how they treat a different student, that doesn't in line. The principal told me that "he would rip my balls off", "he would slam me against the door" and "next time he would see me, he would punch me until I would breathe in small breaks". I was the only one who was shocked, the others were laughing. I should have recorded him, but I don't know what I could have done with the tape because he is very well legally protected and he is one of the most richest principals in Romania. After that, they locked us in the school and half of the student organisers were with me. He had done that before once, after the Europe Day celebration when every year all classes are making a parade with each country in Europe, they wear costumes and make small demonstrations. This year, after the event, nobody wanted to stay for the classes that followed (5 more hours) or did have any books. They were all tired from dancing, singing and running, and so were the teachers. But the main principal locked the school and shouted that nobody would leave until the schedule will be ending. So we all sat and did nothing, just watched ourselves for 5 hours just because the principal wanted so. Anyway, back to our story, I was desperate. The preparations were not ready, the event was about to start in a few hours, and if I couldn't get out, I would have come in the evening when they would let us go, like a normal guy in the audience for something that would not have held on anymore. He forced me to call the rest to come back to school, or they would be in trouble. I did this, but luckily, they had the inspiration to ignore that and remain there, setting up everything without me. The cinema staff, the association, they couldn't have done anything. Principal's face was pumping red all day. One by one, my crew friends ran away and joined the others. I had to communicate with everyone with my voice down in the school toilet, with the realisation of a fear of not being caught up organising an artistic cultural event. It is unbelieveable to this day. Luckily, I managed to run away. Before that, the school security man who knows the situation very well helped me transportate the bag with the gear and microphones to my friends outside the school. One way or another, I ran out and it was the best night of the year and the most successfull event. Notice that everything happened in the last school thursday, when almost nobody would come to school anymore anyway, but we were artists, and that is a bigger sin. About that, I know a story about a couple caught having sex in the school toilet. They were called in the principal office, they got away with nothing and the principal only asked them if it was good, laughing. Others were called for smoking weed at a party, or driking some champagne to celebrate a girl's birthday in the school yard, but none of these are told because they don't want to ruin the school's reputation. One day later, I prepared for the worst. Instead of a big reaction, all I got was my mother called by my class teacher, who told her what a problematic child I am. She told me I had 38 unpermitted absences on the previous semester, which I all recognize, but I relied on the fact that our class master is, at least on this subject (as well as on smoking with the students!), quite forgiveing and she would give the permission for absences registered even 4 months before. I was also very confident because I never missed school without a reason and I never played hooky. Not in my case. I was threatened with expelling for my 38 absences, while other students with 400 or 500 absences were overlooked. This didn't happen. I told the story to all the people we are working with, the cinema collaborators, they are all shocked. One way or another, the year ended. Now, I am extremely scared of what will be next, as I have no intention of letting my projects down for these people. Everyting I am doing now will be part of my portofolio, my experience and so, my future. I am turning this year my cinema projection into the first teen film festival in our country. I am also planning on taking my SATs and doing one or two movies and participating with the help of a friend, to the Cannes film festival.
I often have nightmares with these people that I am really scared of and I know I shouldn't be and I don't know what to do. Since I was little I was most scared of teachers, because in all my school years, only a single one was a role model. I guess the others are not part of a reality that we would all accept. Everything is about propaganda and fear (when the principal or a teacher enters the class, everybody has to stand upright). Romania is different. My parents sometimes are and sometimes are not on my side. I want a successfull career in Hollywood, as many do, but I am eager do to many things. What should I do? Thank you if you read this. I would appreciate an advice.
