Jeramman n̄an Jewel Mapa and Kylie Hofschneider on their showcase audition for talent agents in Los Angeles last month. Jewel, much like her father, Michael Mapa, she has taken the lead in forging a new and exciting path for herself and her family.  They have recently moved from Springdale to Las Vegas where Kylie lives with her other siblings and parents, Ajnilda Mapa and Sean Hofschneider and. Ajnilda is Michael’s younger sister. You can support Jewel and her family in this endeavor here: GoFundMe-Dream Big Marshallese.

Last year, Michael campaigned for a seat on the Quorum Court in Washington county, losing to the incumbent by only 200-300 votes.  He stepped up to represent the Marshallese community by running for office, advocating for better housing, and organizing a Marshallese comedy show with friends.  Michael told Chikin Melele that relocating from Springdale to Las Vegas has been the hardest thing he’s ever done.  Even though Michael moved back and forth between Ebeye and Springdale as a kid, he had become so invested in the community in Arkansas.  Some of the last things Michael did before moving to Las Vegas was to help pack and deliver food for the People’s Pantry, participate in AenEmman’s Father-Son fishing tournament with his son, and livestream a home concert with friends and family.  Truly difficult to leave a solid job, his community work, and Springdale friends and family, Michael is dedicated to his children’s success and making acting an option for his daughter.  Michael and his family are all proud of Jewel and her cousin, Kylie, who have both made the callback list with a talent agency in Los Angeles.

With Disney’s recent open casting call for roles in the live action remake of Moana, it has a lot of Marshallese girls thinking about acting.  A news article about a Micronesian auditioning for Moana has been shared widely across social media platforms too.  At this phase, the casting process has screened potential acting and singing talent for not only how well they sing but also how they dramatically interpret a song.  This very competitive process has spanned the globe, and included talent also from the Marshall Islands.  Emina Esther Jorbon, born and raised in the Marshall Islands, attended Majuro Baptist Christian Academy, received a shortlisted message to submit a full recording of “How Far I’ll Go.”  In a public Facebook post on July 7, Emina thanked everyone for their love and support as she was auditioning for Moana.  Both live action remakes of Moana as well as Lilo and Stich will provide lead roles and many background performers and extras for all Pacific Islanders.  We all know about Noniep and Bartowe and Batmon, so the talent and creativity is there. But, Micronesians can’t be represented in the media without Micronesian actors.

Jewel joined her cousin Kylie Hofschneider in a showcase last month for new talent in Los Angeles.  It was a terrific experience for the whole family and Jewel proved to be a determined girl “saying she’s not nervous.”  Getting screen roles in entertainment can take a lot of work.  Some auditions and roles, like local theater, require the work of a talent agent to access casting calls for commercial roles in television and film.  The major markets continue to be Los Angeles and New York but Las Vegas, Michigan and New Jersey have developed their own smaller markets for recruiting and vetting talent.  Talent agencies offer resources like professional headshots, classes in acting, singing and dance, and support building a demo reel.  Jewel received a callback to continue working with a mid-level but well-established talent agency located in Los Angeles just a few blocks away from Venice beach.  The Mapa family is raising funds for the initial cost of photos and classes as well as travel to and from Los Angeles.  Though hesitant to ask for money, not even having asked for campaign donations, Michael agreed to set up a GoFundMe for the initial costs and travel expenses for Jewel.  Michael is already working with his brother-in-law in pest control and expects to be able to cover Jewel’s expenses, but the family welcomes any contribution: https://www.gofundme.com/f/dream-big-marshallese-girls-hollywood-auditions.