Yes, it’s Jinxie, Culture Queen Extraordinaire!! I’m a bit of a mix and a little bit of everything. I don’t fit in any one category, but yet I am happy with the little bit of dabbling in each.
Background
I was born in the Philippines to a military dad, my awesome Filipino-food cooking mom and 3 older siblings. From there, we moved to Phoenix, Arizona, where I’ve pretty much sat all my life. As a kid, I was probably the stereotypical Asian - I was quiet, shy, and everyone wanted to sit next to me in class… to copy my homework. I was awkward and dorky. I typically excelled in math, writing (I used to write a lot of fanfiction!), art and vocal music. I stuck with singing all through my school years, but it wasn’t until high school that I discovered theater and marching band. I was heavily involved in performing arts in high school and academics took a backseat. Even though I was pretty well-known in high school due to my theater and band involvement, I was still pretty dorky and awkward. I went onto college to major in theater performance. Some personal things happened in my life, and school took a backseat altogether. I got a little more serious in the acting, and accidently stumbled upon modeling. From there, all sorts of doors and events happened and now here I am today!
Modeling/Acting
I started getting into acting doing theater in highschool. I began backstage my first two years with bit parts, lighting and costuming. My junior year I landed my first lead role. Some of the plays I did in high school and college include Dracula, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, and my favorite one, Grease where I played Rizzo!! I started going to TV and commercial acting classes after high school. Modeling came from attending acting school merely by accident. I did one show where they requested a petite model, and I became immersed in Phoenix’s local fashion community. I usually model on the side while acting is my main goal. As for acting, I have appeared as an extra on the CW network, Arizona’s Top Model Search, MTV’s Room Raiders (and yes, it WAS a geeky episode!), a booth babe for Nintendo at E 4 All, and provided voice and motion to Keiko from Juiced 2: Hot Import Nights video game!
Gaming
I grew up in a family of gamers. My older brothers always had the latest and greatest systems and games that they purchased on their own. My actual first system was the Playstation 1 that I got for Christmas, and with it, Final Fantasy 7. My favorite games include the Final Fantasy series (HHHUUUGGGGEE Nobuo Uematsu and Yoshitaka Amano fangirl), Soul Caliber, Katamari Damacy, Fire Emblem, and music related games like Dance Dance Revolution and Rockband. I currently carry around my GameBoy DS with Guitar Hero World Tour permanently attached, and I do not care where I jam! Other systems I own are PS2, Sega Dreamcast, Sega Saturn, and Xbox 360.
Anime
I rarely watch anime nowadays, but it was a big part of my life in school! My first anime was when I was ten, and I really can’t remember if it was Akira (people bleeding milk!) or Urusei Yatsura’s Beautiful Dreamer. My favorite creator is Rumiko Takahashi, seeing as my favorite anime are Urusei Yatsura and Ranma 1/2. Other Takahashi works I like are Maison Ikkoku, Inu-Yasha and Mermaid Saga. I was also a fan of CLAMP (RG Veda and Rayearth specifically), Bubblegum Crisis, Sailor Moon, Dirty Pair (I love Adam Warren’s revamped versions), Please Save My Earth, and forever a Hayao Miyazaki follower.
Cosplay
I grew up learning how to sew from my mom, who made me and my sister’s Halloween costumes, eventually my prom dresses and evening gowns for pageants. I’m not nearly as skilled as she is, so we collaborate together to make my cosplays. My FIRST EVER cosplay was Sailor Jupiter for Halloween in jr high, but my first official cosplay was Rinoa from Final Fantasy 8 to San Diego Comicon 2001. I’d been going to cons for a few years but didn’t really get into cosplay until high school. I only have a few under my belt as I’ve taken time off here and there. I’ve recently gotten back into cosplay. Some of my costumes include Lum from Urusei Yatsura, Yuri from Dirty Pair Flash! and GoGo from Kill Bill Volume 1.
Pageants
Yes.. there ARE pageant girls who are geeks.. and Aktrez and I are living PROOF! Just like modeling, I stumbled upon pageants by accident. I would have never imagined being in a pageant when I was a dork in high school! I was scouted at a Filipino festival to enter the Miss Philippines Arizona pageant, a small community pageant that was held during Independence Day celebration. It was there that I met the first ever Miss Asia Arizona 2003. After winning 1st runner up in that pageant, I moved onto Miss Asia Arizona. Although I didn’t place, I did go home with a Miss Congeniality award, which encouraged me to enter it again. It was in 2007 that I won the crown of Miss Asia Arizona. I had a year of fun filled events, hosting, MCing, volunteering, and meeting people in the community that really changed my life. I also was sent to nationals to compete in the Miss Asian America pageant. My title was up in June 2008, and I’ve decided to discontinue competing in pageants to focus on my career goals. But I do still love the world of pageantry and stay involved in the Miss Asia Arizona pageant family!
Jinx, Today!
I’m currently taking a break from serious acting and am going back to school for broadcast journalism. I still do gigs here and there for acting and modeling to keep me on my toes. II currently work for a airline, which allows me to fly domestically for free to my heart’s content! Some of my favorite places to visit are Hawaii, New York, Toronto and I loved Puerto Rico. I hope to travel to Japan and Europe within the next year.
Favorite Music: No Doubt, Smashing Pumpkins, The Beatles, GreenDay, Deathcab For Cutie, Postal Service, The Swimmers, The Yeah Yeah Yeahs, The Hoosiers, Coldplay, Christina Aguilera, Cat Power, Franz Ferdinand, Kelly Clarkson
Favorite Movies: Legally Blonde, Harry Potter, Grease, Chicago, Moulin Rouge, The Wedding Singer, Romy and Michele’s High School Reunion, The Little Mermaid
Some other random things you might like to know…
- I love sushi! Especially eel! But I’m not much of a fan of seafood. mainly just fried fish.
- I have a thing for cowboys, cowgirls, and the southwest. Probably because I live in AZ…
- I love karaoke!!!!!! Of course.
- I write poetry.. although I haven’t written much lately.
- I collect artbooks. Many Yoshitaka, one with his autograph!
- I also collect Barbies!
- I can probably kick your ass on Time Crisis 3.
- I love watching forensic science and medical/surgery channels
- I live in high heels!! And I love shoes… period. I have abooouuuttt 40 pairs.
- I adore Gwen Stefani and everything related to her.
- I have a 5 foot cardboard stand of Ulala from Space Channel 5 in my bedroom
Websites
Jinxie @ Myspace (Please add a message stating you are from GEN if you add!)
TheJinx.Com (under maaaajor construction!)
Photos on this page by: James Patrick, Robert Garcia, Carlos Velarde, Sandi Fender, S. Pierre Price, BlankLogo Photography, sEEK Photography, Chris Wartenberg.
