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Watching the Harry Potter films you gradually see Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson and Rupert Grint get older as if matching to the year they are in Hogwarts.

For filming, were the ages of the students a factor? I.e. filming of at least the first 4 films each had to be done within a year so that with the next film, at the very least Daniel, Emma and Rupert didn't look too much older for the next film and if done early they had to wait a little bit.

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    Haven't you at least answered your own question with your second paragraph. Obviously they had to pick actors which approximated the ages that Harry and Co were supposed to be. I'm not quite clear on what it is you are asking.
    – Paulie_D
    Oct 13, 2018 at 12:02
  • The filming dates of each film aren't hard to find. Wikipedia and IMBD etc.
    – OrangeDog
    Oct 13, 2018 at 12:45
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    @OrangeDog However, the question isn't if the films were filmed according to age rather than if they were filmed (or at least intended to be filmed) this way because of the actors' age.
    – Napoleon Wilson ♦
    Oct 13, 2018 at 12:46

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The actors were (+-a year) the same age as the characters. They filmed roughly one film a year so this remained true throughout.

The age of the students was massive factor in casting. Quotes from the casting director, Janet Hirshenson (source):

It was really specific on ages because there were several movies hopefully, so we could not go for a small 13-year-old to play anybody. They had to be at least the proper age of the character.

I know at one point there was a push for the actor who did ‘Billy Elliot.’ He was a really good actor, but he was 14 years old. It’s like, ‘No, he was 14 years old. It just can’t be.’

Note she says "hopefully", so they couldn't have been planning to film all four then-released books in one go. Also, they clearly age appropriately between each film:

Ageing comparison of the trio

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    That's not actually what he suggests, and I edited the question reflect that. Neither does it ask if the films were filmed according to age (since as you point out they obviously were, as can be checked on IMDb), rather than if the actors' age was a direct consideration for filming or just turned out to match by luck.
    – Napoleon Wilson ♦
    Oct 13, 2018 at 12:29
  • @NapoleonWilson it doesn't look like you've edited the question to reflect that. It still says "filming of at least the first 4 films each had to be done within a year".
    – OrangeDog
    Oct 13, 2018 at 12:34
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    @NapoleonWilson reagrdless, I now have some quotes from the casting director about how important the age was
    – OrangeDog
    Oct 13, 2018 at 12:38
  • I...added the "each". But thanks for improving the answer, much appreciated.
    – Napoleon Wilson ♦
    Oct 13, 2018 at 12:44
  • @NapoleonWilson ah I see now, that's a subtle change of meaning.
    – OrangeDog
    Oct 13, 2018 at 12:44

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