Tom Hooper facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Tom Hooper
Hooper at the 2010 Toronto Film Festival
Born	Thomas George Hooper (1972-10-05) 5 October 1972 (age 52) London, England
Citizenship	British Australian
Alma mater	University College, Oxford
Occupation	Director producer screenwriter
Years active	1992–present
Parent(s)	Richard Hooper Meredith Hooper
Awards	Full list

Thomas George Hooper (born 5 October 1972) is a British-Australian filmmaker. He is well-known for his work in movies and TV shows. He has won many awards, including an Academy Award (Oscar), a BAFTA Award, and an Emmy Award.

Tom Hooper started making short films when he was a teenager. His first professional short film, Painted Faces, was shown on TV in 1992. While at Oxford University, he directed plays and TV commercials. After college, he directed episodes for British TV shows like Byker Grove and EastEnders.

In the 2000s, Hooper directed popular BBC historical dramas such as Love in a Cold Climate (2001) and Daniel Deronda (2002). He also directed a part of the Prime Suspect series in 2003. He became very well-known for directing HBO projects like Elizabeth I (2005) and John Adams (2008). He won an Emmy Award for directing Elizabeth I.

Hooper directed his first feature film, Red Dust, in 2004. He then directed the sports movie The Damned United (2009). He became famous for directing the historical drama The King's Speech (2010), which won him an Academy Award for Best Director. After that, he directed the musical movie Les Misérables (2012) and the romantic drama The Danish Girl (2015). In 2019, he directed the live-action movie Cats. He also directed two episodes of the HBO fantasy series His Dark Materials in 2019.

Early Life and Education

Tom Hooper was born in London, England, on October 5, 1972. His mother, Meredith Hooper, is an Australian writer. His father, Richard Hooper, is an English media businessman. Tom went to Highgate School and Westminster School. His English and drama teacher, Roger Mortimer, helped him get interested in acting and directing.

When he was 12, Tom read a book about making films and decided he wanted to be a director. At 13, he made his first film, Runaway Dog, using a special 16mm camera. He used very little film and made silent movies because sound was too expensive.

At 14, his film Bomber Jacket won second place in a BBC competition for young filmmakers. This short film was about a boy who finds a bomber jacket and learns his grandfather died in World War II.

After finishing school at 16, Hooper wrote his first professional short film, Painted Faces. He spent two years finding money for the film. It was finally shown on Channel 4 in 1992 and also played at the London Film Festival.

Hooper then studied English at University College, Oxford. While there, he directed plays and even made his first paid TV commercials. He continues to direct commercials along with his movies and TV shows.

Career Highlights

Early TV Work (1997–2003)

After college, Tom Hooper started directing TV shows. His father introduced him to TV producer Matthew Robinson, who helped him get his first jobs. Hooper directed episodes of Quayside and Byker Grove in 1997. He also directed several episodes of the popular BBC show EastEnders from 1998 to 2000. He learned to direct quickly while working on EastEnders.

In 1999, he directed two episodes of the comedy-drama Cold Feet. In 2001, Hooper directed Love in a Cold Climate for the BBC. In 2002, he directed Daniel Deronda, another historical drama. Critics praised his work on these shows.

In 2003, Hooper directed Prime Suspect 6: The Last Witness. He was nominated for a BAFTA Award and an Emmy Award for his directing on this series.

First Movies and HBO Success (2004–2008)

Hooper directed his first feature film, Red Dust, in 2004. It starred Hilary Swank. The film was not widely seen, but it helped Hooper gain experience in feature films.

In 2005, he directed the HBO miniseries Elizabeth I, starring Helen Mirren. This show won Hooper his first Emmy Award for directing. In 2006, he directed the TV film Longford, which was also praised by critics.

These successes led Tom Hanks to choose Hooper to direct the big miniseries John Adams for HBO. This series, starring Paul Giamatti as John Adams, was Hooper's first fully American production. He worked on it for 16 months and managed a large budget. John Adams won many Emmy Awards, and Hooper was nominated for another directing Emmy.

Award-Winning Films (2009–2010)

After John Adams, Hooper directed The Damned United (2009). This film was about the famous English football manager Brian Clough. Hooper did a lot of research for the film, especially on the locations and football stadiums from that time.

Work on Hooper's next film, The King's Speech, started in the same year. His mother told him about the play, which was about King George VI and his Australian speech therapist, Lionel Logue. Hooper cast Colin Firth as the King and Geoffrey Rush as Logue. They spent weeks rehearsing the script.

Hooper with Colin Firth in January 2011

The King's Speech was released in 2010 and became a huge success. It won the People's Choice Award at the Toronto International Film Festival. In February 2011, Tom Hooper won the Academy Award for Best Director for this film.

Studio Films (2011–Present)

After the success of The King's Speech, Hooper was offered many new projects. He chose to direct Les Misérables for Working Title Films. He watched the musical in London's West End to prepare. The movie starred Hugh Jackman, Russell Crowe, Anne Hathaway, and Amanda Seyfried.

Hooper directing the second unit of Les Misérables on location in Winchester, April 2012

Unlike many musical films, Les Misérables had the actors sing live while filming. Hooper believed this allowed the actors to show more emotion in their songs. Les Misérables was released in December 2012 and received eight Academy Award nominations, including Best Picture.

Hooper's fifth feature film, The Danish Girl, came out in late 2015. It tells the story of Lili Elbe, one of the first people to have gender confirmation surgery, and her wife Gerda Wegener. The film starred Eddie Redmayne and Alicia Vikander, who both received Academy Award nominations.

In 2016, it was announced that Hooper would direct a movie based on the musical Cats. The film, Cats, was released in December 2019. It starred many famous actors like Jennifer Hudson and Taylor Swift. The film faced challenges with its visual effects during production.

In 2023, Hooper helped create a new digital version of Les Misérables with improved sound and picture. This version was shown in cinemas in early 2024 to celebrate the musical's upcoming 40th anniversary.

In February 2024, Hooper shared that he is working on new directing projects. He had taken a break from movies after Cats and directed commercials for companies like Vodafone and McDonald's. He is excited to get back to directing films.

Directing Style

Hooper often frames actors at the edge of the scene in films like The Damned United (top) and The King's Speech (bottom)

Tom Hooper uses unique camera styles to help tell his stories. He often reuses and improves his filming techniques in different projects. Research is very important to him, especially for historical dramas like John Adams, to make sure everything looks real. For The Damned United, Hooper studied old football photos to get the right look for the 1960s and 1970s.

Hooper also uses unusual ways to frame his shots. In John Adams, he used a shaky, handheld camera style with wide lenses to show how uncertain American independence felt at the time. This was different from the more traditional filming used for scenes in France.

Similarly, in The Damned United and The King's Speech, Hooper experimented with wide-angle lenses. He would place actors at the very edges of the screen. This style was inspired by old photographs from the 1970s. For example, in The King's Speech, when the King first meets his speech therapist, the King is placed far to the left of the screen. This makes the scene feel a bit awkward and tense.

Another technique Hooper uses is changing the camera lenses to make the picture look different. In The Damned United, he used a 10mm lens for a scene. In The King's Speech, he used lenses like 14mm and 18mm and placed the camera close to the actors' faces. This helped to show the tension in their first meeting.

Filmography

Film

Television

Awards and Nominations

Hooper with Kathryn Bigelow, who won the previous year's Oscar for Best Director

Tom Hooper has won many important awards for his directing. He won an Academy Award for Best Director for The King's Speech in 2011. He also won a Primetime Emmy Award for directing Elizabeth I. His films have received many nominations for BAFTA Awards and Golden Globe Awards.

For example, The King's Speech received 12 Academy Award nominations and won 4, including Best Director for Hooper. Les Misérables received 8 Academy Award nominations and won 3.

Actors who won Academy Awards under Hooper's direction: Tom Hooper has directed several actors to win or be nominated for Academy Awards:

See also

In Spanish: Tom Hooper (cineasta) para niños

• List of directorial debuts
• List of EastEnders crew members
• List of English Academy Award nominees and winners
• List of University of Oxford people