Today we’d like to introduce you to Patrick Roper.
Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
I wanted to be an actor since I was about 5 years old. I was watching Morgan Freeman on an episode of The Electric Company and my mom asked me what I wanted to do when I grew up. I pointed at the screen and said “I want to do that!”
I had a sense back then, watching shows like that, that adults could make money by playing make-believe and I wanted to be a part of that. Luckily my parents thought it was an interesting idea and they liked theatre, television, and film, so they were on board. They decided that the best thing to do was to expose me to as much Classical theatre and film as I could handle, which turned out to be quite a bit.
My mother grew up in southern Oregon near the Oregon Shakespeare Festival and we spent our summers there, so I spent a lot of time in Ashland, watching plays and doing workshops and classes. We watched a lot of Masterpiece Theatre around my house as well, so I became rather accustomed to well-trained British actors and their traditions.
Fortunately, the school system that I went to in the Seattle area, had a state-of-the-art theatre facility and a faculty of amazing teachers who taught drama and technical theatre in a very conservatory-style structure, so by the time I graduated high school, I was fairly well versed in Classical theatre training. At around 17, I started a professional theatre company with some friends and we ran several fairly successful productions over the course of a few years.
Fate, unfortunately, reared the ugly side of its head though, because when I turned 20, I was diagnosed with a pretty aggressive type of cancer. I have since learned that fewer than 10% of males who get this particular type of cancer live past 5 years after diagnosis.
Luckily, in my case, I caught it quite early and we were able to treat it with surgery and chemo. But that took me out of acting for about a year and a half. So during a time when I should have been discovering myself and my place as an adult, I was having to deal with an illness and treatments that put me right back into the care of my family. My family and friends were great, of course, but it certainly wasn’t what I wanted to be doing in my early 20s.
Upon recovering from cancer, I got right back up on stage again and did a couple of seasons at the Washington Shakespeare Festival in Olympia. Also, it was the mid-90s and the independent film scene was booming. I had studied film and screenwriting in college and wanted to start transitioning to film work. Some friends and I got together and started making short films on 16mm. I also got my first agent in this period and was auditioning for projects in the region.
In this same period, I had developed a side job as a master kiltmaker. I grew up in a family with Scottish and Irish origins, and it was a skill that I had learned in my teens from a Northern Irish kiltmaker. Since movies like Braveheart and Rob Roy had been released around that time, my kilt business took off, so I turned my attention to that for a number of years. I made approximately 2500+ kilts in my career and was very proud of my work, but ultimately, that was not what I wanted to do for the rest of my life, so I retired.
Upon retiring, I traveled the world and developed a love for wildlife photography, spending some time going on safaris. I have photographed some of the most endangered species on the planet. Tigers in India, the Big Five in Africa, and Great White Sharks in Mexico. I rode camels in the Arabian deserts and have gone dog sledding in the Yukon. These travels taught me so much about the world, nature, and myself. It was a wonderful adventure.
I decided to make a change in my life and moved to Savannah, GA, a town that I had visited and loved, and since the film industry was really taking off in Georgia, I decided to pursue acting again. Upon studying acting for a couple of years to get a feel for it again and understand the changes in the industry, I got an agent here and started auditioning.
I won several awards for acting in small local film festivals and eventually booked a small role in the Liam Hemsworth film Killerman working opposite renowned Croatian character actor Zlatko Burić. A few months later, I auditioned for the pre-Civil War thriller Emperor.
A week before my audition for Emperor, I was informed that I had once again developed cancer and once again, I had caught it early enough that it could be treated with only surgery and a recovery period. Two days after my audition, I spent a week in the hospital. When I came home, I was informed that I had a callback for Emperor.
I wasn’t exactly anywhere near ready to get up and do the audition, but I knew that I couldn’t pass up the opportunity, so, with staples and a drain still in my side, I strapped myself together with a back belt and did the audition. They seemed impressed by my work and within a week, I had been cast as one of the main antagonists in the movie.
I spent the 6 weeks before the film shoot resting and studying my role. I worked closely with the film’s star Dayo Okeniyi and another great character actor, M.C. Gainey.
Soon after that, I auditioned for the POP TV comedy series Florida Girls. It was originally a one-episode part, but they liked my work so much that they booked me and wrote my character into the rest of the series as a character named Ken that occasionally pops up around town in different jobs, always dealing with the main character in the show, played by series creator Laura Chinn.
Other parts would follow. A small role in Fear Street 1666 on Netflix and a recurring role on Tyler Perry’s Sistas, which was the first major production shot during the COVID pandemic and was a testing ground for the new industry protocols.
Recently, I have finished shooting parts for the new comedy series Panhandle, The Big Door Prize, and the crime thriller Red Right Hand opposite Orlando Bloom.
When I’m not auditioning for roles in film and TV, I spend my time taping and coaching local actors for their auditions and I write extensively on acting.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
My battles with cancer have certainly proved challenging. It’s difficult to suddenly have your own body turn against you and especially frustrating when things are going so well otherwise.
I have learned over the years that you can’t let these things stop you from moving forward. When I’m confronted with a roadblock, although it might present a delay, I tend to be the kind of person that finds a way around, over, or through it. I don’t back down from challenging situations.
COVID also proved to be an obstacle that hit just as things were picking up in my career. The week that everything closed down, I was supposed to attend the L.A. premiere for Emperor, but that was canceled. Like most people, I had a lot of time to reflect and figure out ways to keep moving forward.
Luckily, many people in the industry were keeping busy on social media and they were using it as a way to meet new talent. So, I threw myself into as many opportunities as I could to network and meet people.
What has often sustained me through these periods has been my constant focus on finding balance in life and a rather wicked sense of humor. I like to try to find the lighter side of every dark situation.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
I’m something of a Renaissance figure. An actor, filmmaker, writer, photographer, tailor, chef, explorer, and seeker of knowledge. I often play rather intimidating and morally challenging characters, but I myself am fairly grounded and known to be quite kind and laid back.
I’m proud of my resilience in the face of adversity. I have tried to use what little notoriety I have to advocate for cancer patients, mental illness, emotional health, and animal welfare.
I have also used my knowledge and experience to help support other actors and creatives in the community by writing about film and theatre from the perspective of an actor who has seen many sides of the business for over four decades.
What has certainly set me apart has been my ability to see things from many different points of view. Even ones I don’t always agree with. To adapt and learn lessons from life and usually come up with a perspective that is outside of the box.
We’re always looking for the lessons that can be learned in any situation, including tragic ones like the Covid-19 crisis. Are there any lessons you’ve learned that you can share?
I learned that you need to keep moving both physically and mentally.
Times like this can certainly cause one to shut down and feel hopeless. While it’s okay to recognize when you need to stop and rest, you need to always be looking forward. Be in the present, but make sure you are facing the right direction to continue forward momentum.
Oh, and try to limit your cookie consumption when you are in Netflix and chill mode, because those things will sneak up on you. You have to keep active and take care of yourself.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.imdb.me/patrickroper
- Instagram: www.instagram.com/thepatrickroper
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/403214143188954
- Other: https://www.facebook.com/cateranpicturesstudios
Image Credits:
F. Johnson Photo, Valeria Tannuzzi, Meg Parmenter, and Patrick Roper
