Today we’d like to introduce you to Skylar Jackson.
Skylar, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
My journey started when I played Mary in the family’s retelling of the Nativity story every year.
Not because I was a great actress then. I was just the smallest person, and I could ride on my aunt’s back, who played the donkey. It wasn’t until I was about six or seven at my grandma’s house that I truly thought I had something special. Something happened, maybe a storm, but for whatever reason, the TV went out.
Of course, we were struck with boredom. Usually, our only options are sitting in dark or sleeping. All of a sudden, I struck with the idea to perform Shrek with my sister. She and I did the whole movie. One of my aunts said, “I don’t even need to go to the movies anymore. Just have Skylar watch it, and she’ll act it out for me!” That’s how I started acting, reenacting movies like Rodgers and Hammerstein’s Cinderella, and of course, the best movie of all time, The Lion King.
Then, I was hit with the realization that you don’t have to be born in the magical place of TV Land to be an actor; anyone can do it. After that, my mom enrolled me in all the affordable acting classes she could find until high school when I started theatre classes year-round. At that time, my main focus was on acting. I had no idea how many other options there were until I went to Kennesaw State. I was like a kid in a candy store. I wanted to try it all, and I was blessed that I could.
I tried acting, film work, singing, directing, dramaturgy, playwriting, editing videos, voice-overs, teaching, producing, and research presentations. I continued to expand on all the things that I tried and loved. My time at Kennesaw was truly the most transformative time in my life. Not only did I discover theatre, but most of the shows I worked on were focused on Black culture.
So, halfway through, I added a minor of African and African Diaspora Studies, which allowed me to learn more about Blackness. I studied Blackness not just in America but internationally, especially in Brazil where I was blessed to spend two weeks. Because of my experiences, I took a personal charge to tell the stories of my brothers and sisters who don’t have to privilege to speak in the spaces that I can, to educate others about their conditions and how we can help.
Now, I’m still auditioning, but I’m making my own works. I’m merging my art and my faith more by rewriting Bible stories to reach the new generation in a way that they can identify. At the same time, I’m making videos talking about what being a Christian really is, because, over the years, we have gotten a bad reputation by Christians who want to beat people with the Bible instead of following the love teachings of Christ.
So, I’m focusing more on teaching people to have a relationship with God and to have the mindset of progressing in your faith overlooking to be a perfect person. This is my first time I’m really making work for myself and developing areas in my craft like video editing and shooting, getting comfortable in front of a camera and watching myself, and consistency in posting.
At the same time, I’m developing the areas that I need to, well, develop. I’m able to sing at a church that teaches me to sing and worship in a new way. I work as a substitute teacher, so I get to work with all types of kids and learn from other teachers. I’m even hosting events when I get a chance. So, even when I think I’m not working on my craft or honing my skills, I am!
We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc. – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
No journey worth walking will be a smooth one. I have been uncertain of my potential and my abilities, thinking I wasn’t good enough or smart enough. I thought about changing careers. I thought about moving for better opportunities. None of those worked for me, thankfully.
I had to find my footing and do what I love however I could. I also had to realize that everything I go through is for a reason. Nothing happens by accident. Once I realized that no matter where I go or what I do, there’s a reason and a lesson for it, I stopped looking at my life like something was wrong with it. Now, I look at it like, “What is the world going to teach me today?”
We’d love to hear more about your business.
My mission is to entertain and educate, advocate and collaborate. I believe the best way to teach someone is to sneak their learning into something entertaining and the best way to do anything is to do it together as a community. If I can teach the world to speak their truth, analyze their own experiences, and empathize with others through my art, then I have had a successful career.
I identify as a theatre practitioner because I don’t just operate in one field, but the fields that I specialize in and put in little extra time is acting. Dramaturgy, and research presentations, and teaching. I take opportunities that are given to me, even making my own when I feel I have time.
I’m not bothered being behind the scenes. Sometimes I prefer it, but there’s nothing, and I mean nothing, like being on a stage or arms deep in research that’s going to change someone’s worldview or helping someone see their full potential. Without limitations, I can literally do anything, which is what I’ve always wanted.
To know me is to know that I’m not normal and proud of that. I’m naturally a smiling ball of energy and sunshine. It makes me happy to put a smile on someone’s face and to bring joy to the room. I’m proud that I can’t be put into a label or a box. I’m a bit of everything from sassy to classy, from silly to serious, from country to city, from Afrocentric to urban, and I love every part of it.
What were you like growing up?
Growing up, I was a happy kid, and I found my happiness in the weirdest places. There were many times my mom found me playing in a closet or behind a couch alone. I had an imaginary friend, Lucy, until I was 11 or 12. I wore a big Kool-Aid smile all the time. I was a joyous, optimistic kid. I loved to take pictures and pose. I loved to hug people all the time. I was blessed to try almost everything I wanted to do; 4 different instruments, all different kinds of weird clubs, ballet, step team, everything except football. That was a hard no. In many ways, I’m still the same person I was before.
However, I was teased a lot at school and picked on by my cousins. I knew I was loved, but I just couldn’t fit in. I didn’t know myself. I didn’t know that I was naturally weird and different so I tried to be like everyone else but it never worked. I kept trying to be the girl people told me I should be; a black girl with sass, attitude, and a “too cool to care” demeanor. But she just wasn’t me. I was too loud, energetic, weird, and sensitive for a quiet, calm, conforming world that didn’t care.
When I discovered theatre, it was like a weight lifted off my shoulders. I could be weird and loud, let all my energy and imagination run wild! I was freed. It was then that I started to be comfortable and confident with myself. Of course, it took years to become the woman I am today, and I still have to work at it, but it’s much better than where I was ten years ago. At least I know who I am now. As I look back and as hard as it was, I wouldn’t change my experience if I could.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://skylarjackson18.wixsite.com/skylarresna
- Phone: 6783461303
- Email: skylarjackson18@gmail.com
- Instagram: @skylarresna
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/skylar.resna.jackson
- Twitter: @skylarresna
- Other: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC2z0-ME9lK4Bu6PLYOdj1eQ
Image Credit:
Casey Gardner, TaMesha Stevens, Saysha Jackson
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