Master Class with Roxane Duran: The Challenges of Multi-cultural Performance
During an exceptional master class in English, Cours Florent students had the privilege of meeting Roxane Duran, a Franco-Austrian actress and former student of the school with a singular background and burgeoning international career.
Known for her daring artistic choices and roles that are as intense as they are varied, Roxane generously shared behind-the-scenes information about the profession, her working methods and her demanding - but passionate - relationship with the art of acting.
Roxane Duran made her breakthrough at the age of 15 in Michael Haneke's The White Ribbon, which was awarded the Palme d'Or at the Cannes Film Festival in 2009. She recalls an adolescence turned upside down by the frantic pace of film shoots, festivals and red carpets: ‘It was a bit like living in a fairy tale’, she admits, before reminding us that the profession, although somewhat like a dream, requires a great capacity for anchoring, work and resilience.
Playing between languages and cultures
At the heart of this masterclass was the actress's work across languages and accents. As a Francophone, Anglophone and Germanophone, Roxane Duran navigates with equal ease French, English and American film sets.
‘Each language changes your voice, your gestures, your rhythm, almost your personality’, she explains.
She humorously recounts how she prepared to play a role in British English by intensively watching Hugh Grant films to capture their musicality and rhythm. It was an anecdote that thoroughly amused the audience!
One role, freedom of interpretation
One of her most memorable stories recounted her role in the series Marie-Antoinette, in which she played Marie-Joséphine de Savoie. Enthusiastic about the idea of playing a princess, she discovered an unexpected description of her character in the script: ‘ugly and hairy’.
Rather than allow herself to be thrown off balance, she decided to embrace this contradiction and imagined a princess so convinced of her own beauty and sure of herself that no one would dare contradict her. It was a daring proposition, hailed by director Deborah Davis, which took the role to a whole new level!
Cultivating curiosity and flexibility
Roxane Duran also shared her views on the differences in practices between France, England and the United States: how directors communicate with actors, the importance of text, the energy of the stage... Each country imposes its own codes and approaches, but for her, this diversity is a source of richness:
‘It forces me to reinvent myself with each project, to remain curious and adaptable.’
The meeting concluded in an open exchange with the students, who were curious to learn more about the daily life of an actress who works at the crossroads of cultures and artistic forms.
With lucidity and sensitivity, Roxane Duran has passed on much more than a testimonial: an inspiring vision of the profession, rooted in high standards, humility, and a willingness to embrace the freedom of play.
