Rudiger J. Barth

Rudiger "Rudi" Julius Barth, 62, passed on to the Lord early last Friday morning at Kaiser Permanente Hospital, Harbor City, California, following a prolonged illness.

He is survived by his devoted wife of the past six years, Katherine Rose Barth (nee Brown), his loving daughter Hannah Barth, Long Beach, California, and his young son Jack Julius Barth. Barth was preceded in passing by his father, Julius O. Barth. Also surviving are his loving and deeply grieving mother Susanne Barth (nee Rudiger), Middlebury, Indiana, and his devoted stepmother, Julienne Barth (nee Frank), Goshen, Indiana, along with his siblings, Connie Dew, of Indianapolis, Indiana; Thomas (Melissa) Barth, Middlebury, Indiana; Christopher (Frances) Barth, Bristol, Indiana; Julienne M. Barth, of Santa Fe, New Mexico, and Bruce (Cynde) Krueger, Middlebury, Indiana. In addition, a host of nieces, nephews, cousins, friends and neighbors deeply mourn the loss.

Barth, an award-winning cinematographer and production designer, was born in Köthen, Germany on February 25, 1957. With his parents and his sister Connie, he immigrated to the United States at the age of 6. He resided with his family in Boulder Hill, Illinois, just outside of Aurora, and graduated from Oswego High School in 1975. Barth attended both the University of Southern Illinois, Carbondale, and Columbia College, Chicago, Illinois, where he studied filmmaking. He moved to southern California in his mid-20's to seek out his career in the film industry, eventually residing in the Belmont Shore district of Long Beach, California for many years.

Over time, Barth produced many film and video infomercials, multimedia events, sporting event coverage and commercial spots, forming his own company, Rudiger Barth Productions, in 2010. In 2016, Barth was the Director of Photography as he and his colleague William Kirkley, cast and crew premiered a documentary he and Kirkley had researched and collaborated on for 10 years, "Orange Sunshine." The work won the Audience Award for Best Documentary when it previewed at the Newport Beach Film Festival that year. Having also won the award there for Best Cinematography, "Orange Sunshine" was subsequently chosen to debut at the renowned SX/SW Film Festival in Austin, Texas. The film has received glowing reviews in national publications including Rolling Stone magazine, and is currently available through popular video streaming services. More recently, in 2017, Barth was Director of Photography and Production Designer for "The Carnival Kid," a musical film short. In 2018, "The Carnival Kid" was named best film at the Northern Virginia International Film and Music Festival, and Barth was nominated for Best Cinematography and Best Art and Design.

Unfortunately, Barth's career was cut short by illness. Barth's motto in life was "Live to Inspire Others." Many who knew him well credited him with helping jump-start their careers and doing so with good nature and patience.

A Celebration of Life Service will be held Friday, August 16, at 10 a.m. at St. Bartholomew's Catholic Church, 5100 E. Broadway in Long Beach. The family requests that in lieu of flowers, contributions may be made to the memorial scholarship fund of Jack Julius Barth. Ten percent of the proceeds will be donated to cancer research.

Luyben Dilday Mortuary (562) 425-6401