Biography
Actor
His acting career in the U.S., Canada, Australia and Bolivia includes 13 feature films; over 30 episodes of television in series, mini-series, cartoons and soap operas; and numerous plays and readings with reputable theatre companies.
He has worked under the direction of notorious film makers such as Walter Hill and Frank Pierson, and has shared credits with international stars such as (in alphabetical order): Richard Dean Anderson, David Arquette, Ellen Barkin, Matt Bataglia, Steven Bauer, Irene Bedard, Jeff Bridges, Tantoo Cardinal, Ana Colchero, Gary Cole, Robert Culp, Matt Damon, John Finn, Robert Duvall, Graham Greene, Robert Guillaume, Gene Hackman, Dan Haggerty, Hal Holbrook, Bo Hopkins, Clint Howard, Rachel Hunter, John Hurt, Lorenzo Lamas, Joe Lando, Diane Lane, Roma Maffia, Rachel McLish, Julian McMahon, Edward James Olmos, Jason Patrick, Kelly Preston, Buffy Saint-Marie, August Schellenberg, Jane Seymour, Talia Shire, Fred Ward, Michael T. Weiss, Mykel T. Williamson, Tom Wopat and others.
Director
As a director, Mr. Hoffmann’s credits include George Bizet’s opera Carmen; the musicals Rent, Cats, Les Miserables and Oliver; and a half dozen plays in Spanish by Latin American authors. He served as production consultant and acting coach on the award-winning play The Vagina Monologues and the feature length video Autonomía. He has also worked as a casting associate and consultant in the U.S. and Bolivia.
Training
His training in acting began in San Francisco at the American Conservatory Theatre (ACT) and the Jean Shelton Actor’s Studio where he had the privilege of studying and being directed under such greats as Wendell Phillips, Jean Shelton, Chris Phillips, Benny Ambush, and Stephen Most (U.K.), among others. In Los Angeles the privilege was extended with acting coaches such as Charles Laughton, Geraldine Baron, Marilyn Fox, Gar Campbell and Cliff Osmond. Most importantly, Mr. Hoffmann was blessed to have been mentored by industry players such as Donise Hardy, Gretchen Osmond and Suzanne Clarke to whom he is eternally grateful and indebted.
Memberships
He is a member of the Screen Actors Guild (SAG), the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (AFTRA), and the Pacific Theatre Ensemble (PTE) in Los Angeles. He was a member of the Latin American Theatre Artists (LATA) in San Francisco; co-founder of Turtle Island Ensemble (TIE), an all-indigenous theater project of ACT, in San Francisco; and has also worked with Socorro Valdez of the Teatro Campesino in San Juan Bautista, California.
A member of both SAG’s Latino/Hispanic and Native American Sub-committees, he is also an active volunteer for various non-profit organizations focused on outreach programs in health and education.
Background
Pato Hoffmann was born in La Paz, Bolivia, to parents Quechua, Aymara, German and Spanish heritage. His family moved to New York City when he was only 4 years old. Subsequently he lived in Lima, Peru; Mexico City; Washington, D.C.; San Diego, San Francisco and Los Angeles, California; and Austin, Texas. Mr. Hoffmann is completely fluent in English and Spanish, and conversational in Portuguese. He has performed roles in those languages as well as Cheyenne, Apache, Sioux, Creek, Zuni, Aztec and Quechua, demonstrating his extraordinary linguistic ability.
Education
As a part of his education in International Development, Mr. Hoffmann attended college for 8 years and received a Bachelor’s Degree in Economics with a minor in Anthropology, plus graduate studies in Agricultural Development.
His training in “traditional ways” is primarily, but not limited to, the ways of Plains and Eastern Woodlands Nations (Lakota and Muskogee/Shawnee), making Mr. Hoffmann the proud inheritor and bearer of Indigenous, Latino and European culture. In this regard he is often invited to speak at schools, colleges, universities and non-governmental organizations on cross-cultural and inter-racial issues. He has been given an honorable mention in two different school text books for his contributions in this arena as well as his work in the performing arts.
Other Pursuits
Mr. Hoffmann excels in the Cantonese Style of Choy Li Fut, Kung Fu and has studied with Master E. Y. Lee since 1983 in open-hand techniques as well as the use of the Long Staff and Bay Daggers. He is currently studying the Broad Sword and Phoenix Swords. For relaxation, Mr. Hoffmann enjoys hiking, camping, and horseback riding and is working on his bareback technique.