<P> Mr. Holland's Opus is a 1995 American drama film directed by Stephen Herek, produced by Ted Field, Robert W. Cort, and Michael Nolin, and written by Patrick Sheane Duncan . The film stars Richard Dreyfuss in the title role of Glenn Holland, a high - school music teacher who aspires to write his own composition . The cast also includes Glenne Headly, Olympia Dukakis, William H. Macy, and Jay Thomas . </P> <P> The film was nominated for the Golden Globe Award for Best Screenplay . Richard Dreyfuss also received nominations for the Golden Globe Award for Best Actor--Motion Picture Drama and the Academy Award for Best Actor for his performance in the film . </P> <P> In Portland, Oregon in 1965, Glenn Holland is a talented musician and composer who has been relatively successful in the exhausting life of a professional musical performer . However, in an attempt to enjoy more free time with his young wife, Iris, and to enable him to compose a piece of orchestral music, the 30 - year - old Holland accepts a teaching position at John F. Kennedy High School . </P> <P> Unfortunately for Holland, he is soon forced to realize that his position as a music teacher makes him a marginalized figure in the faculty's hierarchy . Many of his colleagues, and some in Kennedy High's administration, including the school's vice principal Gene Wolters, resent Holland and question the value and importance of music education given the school's strained budget . However, he quickly begins to win many of his colleagues over . Holland finds success using rock and roll as a way to make classical music more accessible to his students . </P>

Where did mr holland's opus take place