Alec Hopkins is an aspiring English director, writer, producer and editor who is best known for portraying the teenage Severus Snape in the film adaptation of Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix.
Career
It was announced in late 2006 that Hopkins would be playing a teenage incarnation of Severus Snape. Then 20-years-old, he won the part in May that year after the casting directors were experiencing some difficulty in finding a younger Snape. Pete Watt, the director of Shining Lights, a theatre group Hopkins attended at the time, had him send in his photos. He subsequently was offered an interview and then an audition. It took four months for him to eventually learn that he won the part.[1] In an interview with Newbury Today, he was quoted:[2]
- "I obviously wasn't expecting it. As soon as I heard, I had this really big smile, and was phoning up my mum and my friends saying I’d got it. Some people didn't believe me, and some still don't!"
- —On receiving the part of teenage Snape
He prepared for the role by catching up on the novels and reviewing the films in order to play the character more accurately.[1][2]
- "The part is pretty easy as it's such a small scene, but because the character has been portrayed by someone before, it's about taking someone's characteristics and trying to copy them. I watched how [Rickman] moved, spoke and the emotions he goes through. He also gave me some pointers about the character – how he would walk and hold himself, like keeping a straight back."
- —On preparing for the character
He was further fitted for prosthetics to make him look closer to the character and later met with veteran actor Alan Rickman where he was given some pointers on the character's mannerisms and "got to see him act."[1][2]
- "Alan Rickman spent a couple of hours having a chat with me about the part and obviously that was nerve wracking; there was me as a nobody and then this famous actor. He's very serious about acting but he likes to joke around. It was really nice and it surprised me - I thought a big star would be different but he was so nice."
- —On meeting Rickman
While filming, he wasn't allowed to leave the country in case he was called up to London at any moment for more filming.[2] Once shooting wrapped, he attended the cast and crew screening.[1]
To date, this is Hopkins' only professional film credit. In an interview conducted in 2008, he revealed that he was to reprise his role as teenage Snape in the next instalment Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince where he would have shot footage for moving photographs, however this plan either did not seem to manifest during production or ended up on the cutting room floor when the film was released.[3][4]
He has since went on to pursue a career in writing, directing, producing and editing amateur film productions.[5]
His latest short film is Andys which was loosely based on Philip K. Dick's 1968 science fiction novel Do Androids Dream Of Electric Sheep? (the same source material for Blade Runner) and featured fellow Harry Potter alum Benedict Clarke in a lead role, who is best known for playing the child version of Snape in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2. The film is a little over 10 minutes in length and while it was shot and completed sometime in March 2012[6] it wasn't released online via Hopkins' official Vimeo until February 2014.[7]
Filmography
Actor
| Year | Format | Title | Role |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2007 | Film | Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix | Young Severus Snape |
Crew
| Year | Format | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2008-09 | Short Film | 6th Airborne | Director | |
| 2009 | Short Film | Through Her Eyes | Director | This was created for his final year project for his BSc Film Production Technology degree at Staffordshire University.[8] |
| 2010 | Promotional Video | Winter Wonderland | Director | This was shot for the annual festival, Winter Wonderland in Hyde Park. The video was used on their website and Facebook page.[9] |
| 2011 | Short Film | Lost and Found | Director | |
| 2011 | Advert/Online Competition | For a Few Doritos More | Director | |
| 2012-14 | Short Film | Andys | Writer, Director, Producer, Editor | Starred Benedict Clarke |
| 2012 | Short Film | When I Grow Up | Director | |
| 2012 | Short Film | Best Friends Forever | Director | |
| 2013 | Short Film | Beth | Writer, Director, Producer, Editor | |
| 2013 | Short Film | How to Date | Director | Was entered into the Virgin Media Shorts competition and Collabor8te & Nokia's Capture the Night film competition.[10] |
| 2013 | Experimental Footage | In the Clouds | Director | |
| 2014 | BTS Footage | Khush Magazine Fashion Shoot | Editor | |
| 2014 | Music Video | Bad Kiddo by El Deyma | Director |
Behind the scenes
Alec with James Walters and Charles Hughes c. 2014
- He is a former pupil of Kennet School and Newbury College in Berkshire.[2]
- In 2006-07, he studied BSc Film Technology Production at Stafford University.[1]
- His taste in music includes Muse, Placebo, Tenacious D, Led Zeppelin among others.[1]
- His favourite film is The Shawshank Redemption (1994) and is a fan of Danny Boyle.[1]
- Before being cast in the Potter films, he never read the books, only watched the films.[1]
External links
Alec Hopkins at the Internet Movie Database
- Alec Hopkins Official Site
- Twitter Account
- Vimeo Account
Notes and references
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 1.7 1.8 Alec Hopkins Interview. SeverusSnape.org. September 2007. Retrieved 29 May 2014.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 Greenham actor tells Newburytoday about his role in the latest Harry Potter film. Newbury Today. (Archived on Oh No They Didn't!.) 6 September 2006. Retrieved 29 May 2014.
- ↑ Alec Hopkins reprises young Snape role in Half-Blood Prince. SnitchSeeker. 6 September 2008. Retrieved 29 May 2014.
- ↑ Video: World Exclusive Harry Potter 6 Alec Hopkins Interview. YouTube. 1 September 2008. Retrieved 29 May 2014. Event occurs at 1:22.
- ↑ See External links. There are plenty of credits that appear on his Vimeo and Official Site that are not listed on his IMDb page.
- ↑ Hopkins, Alec. 'me and @benedictclarke on the set of my short film.' Twitter. 10 March 2012. Retrieved 23 May 2014.
- ↑ Hopkins, Alec. Video: Andys (Full Film). Vimeo. 24 February 2014. Retrieved 23 May 2014.
- ↑ Hopkins, Alec. Through Her Eyes (Full Film). Vimeo. 2 July 2009. Retrieved 29 May 2014.
- ↑ Hopkins, Alec. Winter Wonderland (Full Video). AlecHopkins.co.uk. 22 November 2010. Retrieved 29 May 2014.
- ↑ Hopkins, Alec. How to Date (Full Film). AlecHopkins.co.uk. 17 July 2013. Retrieved 29 May 2014.
