What sport(s) did you play? Either high school or college or recreation league. 

I played Basketball and currently am running distances but most of my life was spent playing basketball.

How many years did you play?

I played basketball for 8 years

What levels of the sport did you play at? (ex. High school, Junior college, Division 1, NAIA, etc.) 

I played in middle school, high school and then 2 years in Junior College. Some of the best years of my life spent there.

Where did you play? 

I went to American Union elementary school, then played at Washington Union High School in Fresno county, and then at Cosumnes River College in Sacramento, CA.

What do you do now in the arts? It can be anything! Painting, music, acting, sculpting, etc. 

Acting is my main craft and what I dedicate most of my time too. However I do love to write, draw, and produce my own films(which are often very small scale). Anything that feels natural or what I feel needs exploring in my life I try.

What was the transition like playing your sport to now being an artist? Was it hard? Did you find it easy? Fill free to name some of the highs and lows.

When I realized that I wasn’t going to go play professionally. I took some time to find what I wanted to do. I got accepted to Sacramento State as a sociology major in 2017 but I decided to take one more semester in junior college just because I could. That’s where I found the acting class as an elective. I immediately felt something fulfilling in the theater. From here on out it’s been a mix of highs and lows of learning between working and not working. A good example is I worked on a dystopian sci fi movie in 2018 and had my first real experience of what it could be to make a film that had meaning (to me) but then I would have the low of not hearing from my agent for 6 months and even then I would be lucky to get work.

How has working in the arts changed your life? 

It’s changed everything for me so much. The ability to find what means the most to you in the work. You get to meet people that you’ve looked up too and then they somehow become demystified because you see the reality of the day to day work. I wouldn’t say everything has changed because I still love to hoop; I still love the game but the arts is a world that is subjective where you may not see the work on the stat sheet.

Something you're most proud of in your sports career and something in your arts career

Winning the Central Valley Championship and the Big 8 Conference. Playing the lead in my first feature film is a big deal.

 What piece of advice would you give to someone choosing to go down the same path as you?

I’d tell any creative person that is coming from athletics, create something that you would want to see. There is no difference between being an athlete and actor in that you have to practice a lot. Listen to your role models but take it with a grain of salt depending on where you’re at in you career because you may limit yourself and that’s something you don’t want to feel stuck in. Now as far as being an Actor I would say is get in the theater and get on stage, do a one act play. That’ll really weed out any doubts you may have about this craft. Lastly, be willing to be professional and protect your relationships. You may make mistakes but at the end of the day have hope that people in this business want the best for you and if they don’t get away from that energy.

Anything else people should know about you? 

I’m from the county of Fresno and grew up in a little community of Easton. In my spare time I’m either training(exercising) or reading books, listening to music or watching a lot of films.

Where can we find your work? What are your socials? (Exhibitions, Youtube, film festivals, streaming, etc.) 

You can check out my films and work at trevorhooper.net. I’m going to have 3 films releasing in 2026 and 2027. Which I’m incredibly excited to share with people. I’m also the founder of this supportive community so I’m on instagram @thooper_, IMDB, Youtube as well. I also run the Athletes to Artists social pages as well (@athletestoartists) so be sure and give us a follow and fill free to reach out for any questions. I’m looking forward to this community and believe the possibilities have some real potential to make a large impact. So we’re here to help, all it takes is one person to talk to.