I’m ready to have children

Since purchasing and doing up the house of his dreams, Roy Dupuis has put down his roots in the country. And now he feels ready to become a father. If all goes well, he will have a family of his own shortly …

Always in demand, the most international of Quebec’s sex-symbols will spend this summer filming the sequel to the television series The Last Chapter. We met him last Friday at Granby during Défi-Vision 2002, a benefit to raise funds for the Mira organisation. Every year, whether he be in Quebec or at the other end of the world, the handsome native of Abitibi makes it his duty to attend this engagement.

Roy, you now have a house in the country where you lead a quiet life, if I’m not mistaken

For me it’s not at all quiet. This house is a lifetime’s work. A house is more than an investment: it’s a legacy. I want to start a family. I’ve planned it for a long time. I think I’ve always wanted to bring up children in the country, but not too far from the town. I spent my youth in Abitibi, in the woods.

So the countryside doesn’t scare you …

Abitibi isn’t the countryside, it’s the woods! <laughs> There’s a little countryside, but really not a lot. Over there the people have difficulty farming. By comparison where I am now is not quiet.

It’s often said that, in your profession, when a job’s finished, there’s nothing left apart from the film. Something practical, therefore, like the renovation gives you a means of anchoring yourself in tangible things …

It’s true that at the time when you’re working you don’t see the results right away. Afterwards you see what other people have done to it. <laughs> This is still quite abstract; it’s physical work, but also very intellectual. I spent my childhood building cabins in the woods. When I began to work on my house the skills came back to me easily. It’s become a hobby. Actually I don’t like that word because, for me, it’s more than that. I have an old house built in 1840 which I’m doing up the way I like. It’s a means of expressing myself in solid form, in three dimensions. It’s good for the brain …

Are you good with your hands?

Good enough, yes. There’s hardly anything I don’t do. My house is old, and I want to redo it properly. It works out alright: I have a great pal who’s a carpenter and he helps me with the renovation. But there is hardly anyone who touches my house when I’m not there!

Do you feel that buying a house is a bit like putting down roots?

Yes, and that too is part of my philosophy regarding a house. My father was a commercial traveller. He worked for Maple Leaf Canada Parker. Until the age of 11 I lived in Amos. Later we were uprooted from there and settled in the north of Ontario. Then when my parents got divorced, we returned to Quebec. So yes, maybe I feel the need to put down roots somewhere. I think it’s good and important. My house is my own project; my children will do with it what they wish. My goal is that it is there for them to spend their family life in, and that they don’t forget where they came from. That too I think is important. Not to forget where you come from. I really like the mixture of very old and very modern, like in my house there’s even everything in between. In fact, I put in anything I think is beautiful and which I enjoy.

Not only antiques ….

No, I don’t limit myself to a single style.

Are you into interior decorating too?

Yes; I have a girlfriend and we discuss it. Décor is important to me. I like to choose the colours, the textures, the ceramics.

You talked earlier about starting a family. Do you feel the time has come for you to have children?

Yes.

It’s a wonderful experience.

It appears to be. I don’t know. I feel I would like to have a go at it. We shall see .... maybe it won't work out ....

Would you like a big family?

I don’t have any definite thoughts on the subject. I don’t know what to expect, and that’s the way it is. I feel that I’m ready, that I’ve done the necessary work to have got there. I come from a family who are a bit special <odd?>. I have done a fair bit of psychoanalysis, not just for this reason but also out of curiosity. Psychoanalysis interests me enormously. I feel that I still have some work to do in order not to perpetuate …..

….. certain patterns?

Yes, certain things that you repeat, that you acquire from your parents, and that they acquire from theirs.

Is it worrying, being interested in psychoanalysis, to take up the challenge of raising a child?

You don’t have to “go over the top” on this. From the moment you understand the mechanism that operates between a parent and a toddler from the age of nothing to three, it’s fascinating. The parent influences the child and helps it to grow up. I think that as a parent, having mastered this knowledge, you might make fewer mistakes.

You have participated once again in Mira’s Défi-Vision. I get a feeling that this is the activity that, once a year, you come out of hiding for ….

Practically, yes. It’s my charitable deed of the year. I love the idea of uniting animal and human being to make a team. Érik Saint-Pierre, the founder of Mira, teaches his techniques for training dogs all over the world. He does incredible work. He was the first person to give guide dogs to adolescents, who could then go to school with their companion. This enables them to meet other young people. The dogs are always an attraction.

How long have you worked for the Foundation?

Certainly about a dozen years., maybe 11 or 12. I haven’t counted them. I’ve always loved animals. Besides, I have dogs.

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