INTRODUCTION

For the Profile Documentary unit, we were asked to choose a person we find interesting that people should know about. In English, we were asked to interview three people, including our main star, and research several articles in which we would use to create our paper. Once we finished we would create a magazine template to insert our article in Design, and post our work onto our Profile Website.

Throughout this whole process, I’ve found that I have really been able to grow as a producer within the technological world we live in. As I was conducting my interviews and getting to know the people I was working with, I realized how important it is to create good relationships with those in your documentary. To not just see them as a “project,” but real people who have stories to share.

Walter Mayes is a jack of all trades. He is an actor, a director, a teacher, a professional storyteller, a five time jeopardy champion, and a published author. However, outside of his theatrical antics and his storytelling, Walter can be found sitting in his room full of books as the librarian of the Girls Middle School.

MAGAZINE
Magazine Thumbnail

Creating our magazine has been an exciting project. For English we were asked to create a profile documentary paper based on three interviews and several research articles. Once we finished our paper, we were to put it in our magazine template created in the adobe software of InDesign. I tried to incorporate colors and design aspects that relate to Walter within my piece, so if you have time please look through my magazine thoroughly.

I really wanted my magazine and website to be complementary to one another, so I tried to imitate my website design to the template of my magazine. This has been a very meaningful project for me because I not only was able to create a project I’m proud of, but I was able to meet people such as Walter, who are impacting the world in small meaningful ways. I’m very grateful for the opportunity Freestyle has given me to create this project because without them I wouldn’t have been able to do it. You can click on the image of Walter to view my magazine article, and I hope you enjoy.

PHOTOGALLERY
Books
Stacked Books in Walter's Library
Directing
Walter Directing Evita
Advisory Duck
Duck with names of past advisees
Life in the Library
Walter scanning new books
Walter's Job
Putting new books into the library
Library
Walter's library
Walter Reading
Walter reading his published book
Read
Sign above Walter's office door
Shelf
Shelf in the library
Sticker
Sticker in the library
Walter Conducting
Walter conducting play rehearsal
Theatre
The stage Walter works in
Siggi and Walter
Siggi and Walter reuniting
Walter
Walter at Rehearsal
Walter in the Library
Walter sitting in his library
Walter's Book
Walter the Giant Storyteller's Giant Book of Giant Stories
BIOS
Siggi Bengston

Siggi Bengston is a current senior at Palo Alto High School, where she is part of student publication and student leading. Outside of school you can find her running around playing basketball and basically doing any activity in which she run around in. As well as her extracurriculars, Siggi is an intern at Project Happiness where she helps develop projects and ideas for them to use. Recently she has started a new project where she asks people what their definition of success is in attempts to change their narratives on specific topics.

Relation to Walter: Being a former student to the Girls Middle School, Siggi fondly remembers her days as a student advisor to Walter Mayes. During her time there the two were able to create a student-teacher relationship in which she learned to be herself and search for her own happiness.

pic of person
name
Walter Mayes

Walter Mayes is the librarian of the Girls Middle School in Palo Alto and a professional storyteller who goes by the name of Walter the Giant Storyteller. Walter has worked several jobs in the publishing business, even going as far as to writing and publishing to of his own books. This includes Walter the Giant Storyteller’s Giant Book of Giant Stories and Valerie and Walter’s Best Books for Children, in which he co-authored with Valerie Lewis. Aside from this, he has also directed and acted in several plays, and is currently directing the Sunnyvale Community Players adaptation of Evita.

Relation to Walter: He is Walter

pic of person
name
Esther Selk

Esther Selk is a drama teacher, math teacher, and alumnae affairs director at the Girls Middle School, where she has worked for almost 15 years. She has earned multiple degrees within in the maths and sciences department at San Diego and San Jose. However outside of her intellectual pursuits, she enjoys being part of the theatrical community and spending time with her family.

Relation to Walter: Esther first met Walter when she posed as Walter the Giant Storyteller’s wife without ever having met him before during the GMS Read-a-thon. He came to do a performance for the girls, and sooner or later became part of the GMS community as their librarian. Since their paths have crossed, they have become very close friends relying on one another for anything and everything.