OUR CLASS OF 2019 EMILY RUHL

When my phone rings to catch up with model, actress and Instagram golden girl Emily Ruhl, I’m weirdly nervous. She’s young, beautiful and has worked on a major Hollywood movie opposite my own personal crush – Nicholas Hoult. My nerves were misplaced though, as she instantly put me at ease.

MODEL TURNED ACTRESS

Emily Ruhl has been modelling since she was 13 when she left her hometown of Dallas to move to Asia.

“I was scouted at a very young age, so the whole modelling thing just sort of happened before my eyes. I’m probably known more for my modelling, but I’m trying to focus more on my acting career at the moment.”

When I ask how it’s going, I’m met with enthusiasm for her new found passion. Emily has recently made her debut in Drake Doremus’ Netflix drama Newness with Nicholas Hoult.

She tells me all about it – “I play Nicholas’ date in the movie, and the way our scene was shot was really cool. The first day on set was midnight to 6am because it was a night scene and Drake didn’t want us to meet beforehand. He was adamant that the scene had to be real, so the first time we see each other in the movie, it’s genuine. The nerves and awkwardness are real! Nicholas Hoult is just cool, it was great to work with him.”

FINDING CREATIVE FULFILLMENT

For Emily, acting makes a welcome change from modelling, and it’s a lot more creatively fulfilling. She goes on, “I never wanted my talent in life to be what I looked like. I want to create something I’m proud of and have the power to tell stories.”

When asked what makes acting so creatively fulfilling, she told me “acting forces you to be honest with yourself. Unlike modelling, it isn’t about achieving perfection, it’s about telling a story and having a voice. It offers a moment to escape, for both audience and actor, which to me is the greatest gift. My goal is to always be honest – I don’t want to sell perfection anymore.”

INSTAGRAM FAME

Emily doesn’t like to think of herself as an influencer – “I modelled for Pop & Suki and KKW Beauty, which gave me a lot of coverage but the images on my personal Instagram are more artistic.”

It’s clear that her passion for honesty and her creative streak are the inspiration behind her Instagram aesthetic.

“I actually started blogging and taking photos on Tumblr, and I liked the idea of having an outlet and a moodboard. My Instagram is just an extension of that really – I want it to be authentic. I try not to use too many face tuning apps or filters as it takes away from what I’m doing.”

Her determination to fight body-shaming culture is refreshing coming from someone so young and so beautiful. It’s clear that Emily cares about health and wellness.

“I never want someone to look at what I’m posting and feel bad about themselves. Growing up as a model, I know how that feels, and I never want to make anyone feel like that. When I was younger, my body image wasn’t great and I kind of ruined my body by trying to achieve perfection. Now more than ever women are faced with unrealistic images of bodies, and I don’t want to fuel that which is partly why I chose to go into acting.”

TELLING TALES

We spend a while chatting about what brought her to LA and her passion for acting. She’s taking classes to perfect her art and spending a lot of time auditioning at the moment. She tells me that her dream role would be a strong female role – “it doesn’t matter to me whether that’s an addict or a beauty queen – as long as it’s someone who’s got a story to tell.”

She tells me that her passion is storytelling and that she has a fascination with being able to take people away from their everyday lives and into something creatively meaningful. She says, “I love the idea of stopping time for people and being able to take them away from reality for a moment.”

The interview has come to an end, and she’s become my new girl crush, so I know what I think of her. But I thought it fitting to ask what she thinks of herself. She tells me, “thoughtful, hardworking and creative.”