7/8/03 OCEANSIDE
Patricia West-Del Ruth has parlayed her Hollywood connections into a popular long-lasting, locally-produced TV interview show for local cable channels.
 Patricia West-Del Ruth relaxes in her home in Oceanside, where she hosts a locally-produced TV show called 'Creative Cafe.' |
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Bill Wechter/Staff Photographer
North County Times |
Through her production company Creative Heart Productions, the Oceanside resident serves as executive producer, host, writer and co-editor of "Creative Café," which features interviews with film industry professionals in the comfort of her own kitchen.
The show, which has been in production since 1999, just finished filming its 25th episode. The milestone segment began airing Monday to 600,000 homes through Cox Cable, Adelphia, Del Mar-TV and KOCT.
For the episode, West Del-Ruth interviewed Maestro Donald Barra, an actor and the conductor of the Festival Pops with the San Diego Chamber Orchestra, headed to Oceanside on Aug. 7.
"I don't arbitrarily interview," West Del-Ruth said. "I wait for the right guest because I want to keep the integrity of the show intact. I like to flesh out the creativity of the people being interviewed." West-Del Ruth also teaches acting classes designed to help adults and children discover their inner creativity through her Acting From the Heart workshops.
She said she considers herself a "creative consultant."
"I believe if you can inspire people to focus on creative self expression rather than what's not right in their life, they will find fulfillment," she said.
West-Del Ruth has been teaching the 12-week long workshops three times a year since 2000. The courses are taught at KOCT and Del Mar-TV.
West Del-Ruth uses the money she makes from the classes and her own fund raising to fuel her production company. The workshops attract an eclectic group of people, everyone from CEOs and psychologists to actors and independent film makers.
West-Del Ruth said many people taking her classes are trying to learn the art of communication rather than acting.
"I teach them not to speak eloquently but to speak directly from the heart," West-Del Ruth said.
Attorney Steven Kondo, who met West-Del Ruth during one of her workshops two years ago, said she helps a person tap into their own individual creative self.
"Patricia is a very intuitive person who brings a lot of skills to what she does," Kondo said. "She teaches people of all different walks of life to explore their uniqueness. And she teaches each person differently, depending on what they need."
At the end of June, West-Del Ruth finished filming the first two episodes of her latest series, "Cinema Scene," in which she interviews film industry professionals in front of a live studio audience composed of students from her workshops.
"For 'Creative Café,' I keep things very informal; it's in my home and it's one on one," West Del-Ruth said. "'Cinema Scene' is different because it is filmed in a studio with specific questions being asked for educational purposes."
For the first episodes of "Cinema Scene," West-Del Ruth interviewed Bob Fisher, a member of the American Society of Cinematography, and her husband, Thomas Del Ruth, a cinematographer for such shows as "The West Wing" and "The X-Files."
Luawanna Hallstrom was one of West Del-Ruth's students in the audience during the filming and said she enjoyed the show because West Del-Ruth focused on the technical side of acting.
"In discussing the technical aspects of acting, her in-depth questions brought out information on matching, lighting and styles of acting," Hallstrom said. "She has such a wealth of knowledge of acting and the film industry. She has so much integrity and she's professional in everything she does."
"Cinema Scene" will air on Del Mar-TV's Channel 66 on July 10, July 17, Aug.14 and Aug. 21, and at 9:30 a.m. on July 11 and 18, and on Aug .15 and 22. The show will also air on Adelphia.
Aside from her television shows and workshops, West Del-Ruth is a member of Soroptimist International and Amnesty International, and has sat on the board for the San Diego Film Festival. Currently, she is on the board of directors for KOCT-TV.
She received her master's degree in psychology in 1999, and she is a nationally certified Tae Kwon Do instructor. West-Del Ruth has a background in acting with roles in "Hill Street Blues" "General Hospital " and the feature film "Quicksilver" with Kevin Bacon.
Though West-Del Ruth's husband lives in Los Angeles during the week to be close to work, she maintains the family home in Oceanside.
She said she would not want to live anywhere else.
"When you look at your community and think in terms of individual development and human potential, you realize it starts in your own neighborhood," West-Del Ruth said. "I want to support people who may never have the opportunity to be mentored professionally in Cinema Arts."
Reprinted with permission from the North County Times