STARDOM IN DENTON, TEXAS
This photo story follows Jaylen Jackson, 21-year-old Denton resident, as she gets ready to film an audition. Jackson started taking acting classes during high school and is now signed with a Dallas agent and a Los Angeles agent and manager. She has always been a small-town Texan girl, so the glitz and glamor of L.A. and the promise of fame is not what drew Jackson to acting. A sense of connection to the craft and a passion for storytelling is what drives Jackson to chase this seemingly far-fetched dream, though, for her, this dream may not be so far off from coming true.
Jaylen Jackson, a 21-year-old actress, holds her cat, Mia, for a cuddle before she prepares to film an audition on Wednesday, Feb. 19, 2025. Mia has been Jackson's cat for 15 years, since she was six years old. Photo/ Natalie VanDerWal
Jaylen Jackson looks through different scripts at her desk in her apartment in Denton, Texas on Feb. 19, 2025. Jackson's room is her safe place, with her cat, plants and many movie posters that cover her walls. Photo/ Natalie VanDerWal
Jaylen Jackson prepares for an audition on Wednesday, Feb. 19, 2025 and is putting the frame together that holds up her blue backdrop. This part of the audition process is the most frustrating for Jackson; her room is too small, her equipment is too big and its very hard to do alone. Photo/ Natalie VanDerWal
Jaylen Jackson applies her Dior lipstick in her mirror before she begins filming for an audition on Wednesday, Feb. 19, 2025. Her Dior lipstick is the most expensive item in Jackson's makeup routine, as she has never been a fan of anything more than her drugstore staples. Photo/ Natalie VanDerWal
Jaylen Jackson reads over the requirements for her audition one last time before beginning to film on Wednesday, Feb. 19, 2025. Jackson changed into a University of North Texas pullover and is playing a college student in this audition, despite not having taken classes since the spring of 2022. Photo/ Natalie VanDerWal
Jaylen Jackson fidgets with her nails as she is filming an audition on Wednesday, Feb. 19, 2025. Jackson is always hypercritical of her appearance when she is filming her auditions, even down to her nails, which normally aren't even painted. Photo/ Natalie VanDerWal
Jaylen Jackson is highly focused on perfectly executing every aspect of the audition that she is filming on Wednesday, Feb. 19, 2025. Jackson was rereading the instructions from the casting directors for the last time before submitting the audition tape. Photo/ Natalie VanDerWal
AN I.C.E. COLD PROTEST
This photo story follows a walk-out protest that occurred on Wednesday, Feb. 12, 2025 at the University of North Texas campus. UNT students were protesting the recent increase in arrests by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents following the inauguration of President Donald Trump in January. The protest began at the south side of the Library Mall and traveled around the University Union and across campus.
A protester in the Library Mall on the University of North Texas campus on Wednesday, Feb. 12, holds a sign that reads, "The only immigrant I want deported is Elon 'Musty'!" Protesters gathered to stand up against ICE deportations that increased recently across the United States. Photo/ Natalie VanDerWal
On Wednesday, Feb. 12 at the University of North Texas, students participate in a walk-out protest against suspected ICE presence on campus and in Denton and recent deportations of immigrants into the United States following the inauguration of President Donald Trump. Even if it was a message written hastily in a notebook, those who were passionate about the cause made a noticeable effort to show their support. Photo/ Natalie VanDerWal
As protesters against the deportation of immigrants marched around the University of North Texas campus on Wednesday, Feb. 12, handwritten signs and Mexican flags are held high by many participants. Photo/ Natalie VanDerWal
Hand painted signs in vibrant reds and greens, like the Mexican flag, are waving high at the protest against ICE and the deportation of Mexican immigrants on Wednesday, Feb. 12 in the Library Mall on the University of North Texas campus. Many signs said these two phrases: "We speak for those who can't," and, "families belong together." Photo/ Natalie VanDerWal
Gathered around people speaking in the Library Mall on the University of North Texas campus Wednesday, Feb. 12, protesters with signs listen with grim looks on their faces. ICE agents were rumored to have been on campus in the days prior, which fueled emotions at this protest. Photo/ Natalie VanDerWal
In front of the Hurley Administration Building on the University of North Texas campus on Wednesday, Feb. 12, protesters against ICE hold signs and chant to bring attention to the issue they are assembling and marching for. One of the chants said, "No Trump, no KKK, no racist U.S.A." Photo/ Natalie VanDerWal
