If actor Romy Hooper looks familiar, it’s because she’s been appearing on our screens, and on stage, for the past 15 years.
Her first big break
“My first professional job out of drama school, I played a patient on Shortland Street without even auditioning,” says Romy, 36, of her big break.
“But my real debut was on Nothing Trivial. “For three years, I played Courtney and I did that audition while stuffing a lamington into my mouth. It was a risky move, but the casting director was sold.”
Since then, Romy’s appeared in The Brokenwood Mysteries, The Panthers, Creamerie and Sweet Tooth. She’s also been cast in numerous ads. Including playing the mum in The Warehouse’s singing and dancing Mambo No. 5 (A Little Bit of…) campaign last Christmas.
The truth about ads
“Ads can be a real treasure for actors,” she laughs.
“The number of takes we had to do to nail that shoot – between the musical timing, the kids, the dog and the lyrics. I used to love Lou Bega, but I wouldn’t mind if I never heard that song again!”
But being an actor isn’t all fun and games, and rather than wait to be offered roles. Romy ensures she has lots of things on the go.
Creating her own path
“I’d love to act every day, but that’s not realistic, so I create my own work,” says Romy of her multi-faceted CV, which includes collaborations in theatre, film and television.
“I also trained as an intimacy coordinator in 2020, which has kept me busy over the past few years. Commercial voiceover work helps keep me afloat and I narrate audiobooks.”
Her in-demand vocal chords can be heard narrating books and magazines. Including our very own Weekly, at Blind Low Vision NZ.
Giving back with her voice
“It’s such a privilege to narrate quality written content for people who don’t have the luxury of viewing it themselves,” enthuses Romy of the gig she’s done for close to 10 years.
“Providing aural descriptions is another highlight, like what the royals are wearing.”
Romy recently co-directed and co-produced feature film Notes from a Fish.
Right place, right time
“I’d just bought a little ’70s bungalow with my partner Rob, when my friend, film director and writer Tom Levesque asked if I wanted to work on his second feature – and our house just happened to
be the perfect location,” tells Romy.
She also took on the lead role of Charlie, who she describes as “an unstable nautical private eye”.
She adds, “I’d helped on Tom’s first feature Shut Eye and it did really well on the festival circuit, so I said, ‘Let’s do it!’”
A surprise on screen and off
Although unbeknown to Romy, she was in the very early stages of pregnancy.
“Rob and I had been trying for two years,”
she shares. “We’d been through fertility treatment and I’d had a miscarriage. We were on the waiting list for IVF while in the midst of settling on our first house in Henderson and because I was so distracted, I forgot to take my ovulation tablets. “Lo and behold, I fell pregnant naturally, which was the same month Tom approached me about the film,” says the high-achieving Westie, whose baby’s gender was revealed in a burn-out at their house-warming party.
The smoke colour? Blue for a boy!
Ten days, one baby and a film
As for the film, it’s a screwball comedy-mystery all about a writer and a missing tropical fish. Written in a week, and shot in just 10 days, the creative team pulled in favours, with talented mates like Tom Sainsbury, John Leigh and Yvette Parsons all donating their time.
“We wanted to challenge ourselves to create something fast, while also utilising our friends’ many talents,” says Romy.
And even though the film was made on the smell of an oily rag, it’s been accepted into Wha¯nau Ma¯rama: New Zealand International Film Festival, with The Spinoff picking it as one of the top 10
films to watch this year.
“It’s still hard to believe we pulled it off,” she reflects.
“Or that I was pregnant throughout. Most feature films take years to complete, but we were in pre-production just before Christmas last year and we finished it for little more than $10,000.”
As for what’s next, Romy’s enjoying a well-deserved break with her baby boy Toby Ray Donovan Hooper-Scott, who was born just three weeks before the film’s premiere.
Notes from a Fish screens in August in Auckland, Wellington, Christchurch and Dunedin as part of Whānau Mārama: NZ International Film Festival. See nziff.co.nz/2025
