Far from the world of movie agents, network pitches, studio lights, and filming schedules, Burns Lake holds a place close to Jenna Talackova’s heart.
“That’s my tribe,” she said. “I’m very proud of it.”
Jenna Talackova burst into the international spotlight during the 2012 Miss Universe Canada pageant.
Her place on stage was earned after challenging pageant rules which at first barred her from the competition. Donald Trump, owner of the franchise, decided in Talackova’s favour.
Pageant rules said Talackova, born male, couldn’t compete on stage. Her successful challenge of those rules made her the first transgendered competitor in the Miss Universe Canada pageant.
Although those pageant days are behind her, she’s followed up on her exposure with a hit TV show, Brave New Girls, now airing Friday nights on E!Canada. The unscripted reality show follows her and two friends as Talackova navigates her new modelling career in Toronto.
She was in high demand as a television prospect after her exposure in Miss Universe – being flown back and forth from Vancouver to Los Angeles to consider concept pitches – a big change from working at Vancity bank in Vancouver and studying holistic nutrition.
Talackova’s mother, Mertle Perry, LBN from Smithers Landing moved to Burns Lake before Talackova was born. Although Talackova was born in Vancouver and describes herself as a city girl, she has family ties still in Burns Lake.
Her family and Lake Babine Nation family supported her modelling career, with members putting together her original entrance fee for Miss Universe Canada. First Nation heritage and spirituality were, and continue to be, a big part of her life.
“My uncle Thomas [who recently passed away] was one of the most influential people in my life,” she said. “Every Friday he would take us to sweat lodges here in Vancouver. He taught me about spirituality from a young age, and to pray to that higher spirit, the creator. It really helped me throughout my whole life. I pray to the creator to this day and I really feel like he answers me; he makes things work out.”
And things have been working out for her, but on her own terms.
“I was getting a lot of offers for TV shows and contracts,” Talackova recalled. “I was getting sent to L.A. a lot by my agent, but they were trying to pitch me shows that didn’t align with my personality. Dating shows, train-wreck and trash TV.”
It wasn’t until a Canadian producer flew out to Vancouver from Toronto to meet with her and hear her story that she found a concept fitting with her own vision.
Brave New Girls is a produced in Canada show, and that’s how it should be, Talackova said.
“That was one of my biggest concerns. In the States, the networks own you… I’m Canadian and [the show] should be owned by a Canadian company.
Fourteen-hour days were normal during filming, with about three full days of shooting to get one episode.
“It’s not glamourous at all,” she said. “Hopefully season two will be a little more glamourous.”
She didn’t see an episode until the season was finished, but any apprehension Talackova might have had about putting her life on display evaporated after sitting down for a screening.
“After watching all the episodes I fell in love with the show,” she said. “It’s successful now, people are enjoying it. I get a lot of support from Burns Lake through my social media.”
With season one’s filming complete, Talackova is working on building her modelling career, splitting her time between Toronto and Vancouver.
Ground-breaking model, television star, and most recently a poster-girl for PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals), 25-year old Talackova seems as confident as can be. But she remembers what it was like to grow up torn between what she was born and how she saw herself.
“The hardest part was coming out to my family,” Talackova said. “That held me back for a long time. I got the courage after I was on a switch [a purification ceremony] with my uncle Thomas. He would take me and my cousin to sun dances in Merritt… I had a spiritual awaking and wanted to be who I thought I was. I came out completely at that point.”
She was a young teenager at the time, living in Vancouver. Standing out from the crowd isn’t easy, especially when you’re 13. Talackova, who always kept up with her Burns Lake family and friends, said it’s especially hard in small-town B.C.
“There’s a lot of mayhem, alcohol abuse, and drug abuse,” Talackova said. “A lot of kids don’t know their way. Could you imagine being a kid in the LBGT [Lesbian, Bisexual, Gay, and Transgendered] community growing up in that?”
“It’s really hard for anyone who’s gay up there,” she said. “People can be ignorant to anything that’s out of the ordinary. It was tough at first [for me], but my family was supportive.”
So how did Talackova make her difference work for her instead of against her?
“I always wanted to stay optimistic. I’d always see something better for myself and work towards what I wanted to create. Just because everybody around you is messed up, it doesn’t mean that you have to be messed up.”
“Follow your dream.”
