LIBBIE TURNER Freshman Libbie Turner approached her first semester with a portfolio different than the average incoming student. With a callback to an audition for the Coen brothers' movie "True Grit" and a contract with a modeling agency in Atlanta, Turner's life was full of plays, shooting sessions and road trips. Born in Searcy, Ark., but raised near Houston, Texas, Turner started acting when she was 2 years old. From singing and reading stories in her mom's ladies class to Christmas plays at her church, Turner immersed herself in performance. Turner committed to acting when a couple from her congregation offered to sponsor her acting classes. While in Texas, Turner took acting classes, but her family moved to Searcy when she was in the seventh grade, and she had no opportunity for acting classes. Instead, Turner worked with the Searcy Summer Dinner Theatre and the Center on the Square. It was then that one of Turner's friends from the Arkansas Repertory Theatre in Little Rock, Ark., told her that the producers of the movie "True Grit" were holding auditions for the leading role. "My dad drove me to Memphis and after a first audition, I got called back to the Penthouse, and I had to record a new audition," Turner said. "I was so excited, and even [though] I didn't end up getting the role, that was what got me started." Turner signed with an agent in Memphis who encouraged her to try modeling to gain more experience in front of the camera. A representative of the Atlanta-based modeling agency Click saw Turner at a fashion exposition in Memphis in November of 2012 and asked her to sign a contract with them. Turner began working with Click in June of 2013. In the fall, Turner placed a request for a photographer on Pipeline to further add to her portfolio. Adjunct instructor Grant Dillion saw her request and asked to do the photo shoot. "A lot of models don't smile very much," Dillion said. "But whenever Libbie smiles, it is radiant and lights up the room. When she gets to smile in her pictures, those are the best photos." Ann Nieto, a director at the Performing Arts Center on the Square, worked with Turner in various plays and saw acting potential in her. "Talent is unborn; it cannot be taught, but just shaped," Nieto said. "When I worked with Libbie, I knew she had talent. She really makes the character come to life." Though Turner intended to pursue her career in modeling and acting, she decided to temporarily set acting aside to focus on school. "She is doing the smarter route because modeling only lasts for so long," Dillion said. "I love that she is going to college and getting a career outside modeling." In November, Turner reconnected with the acting agency in Atlanta to discuss future projects. Though she put acting aside for a time, she intended to make it a long-term part of her life. Virginia "Vivi" Vitalone Mark Rickett Ellen Rider Mary Kate Riffle Anna Ritchie Jonah Roberts Maya Roberts Caroline Robertson Joshua Robinson Katie Rodgers David Rogers Katherin Rosales Wil Rose Emily Ross Kaylie Ross Sarah Ross Kimberly Rowand Nathan Roy John Rucker Jorge Ruiz Flores Haley Rushing Cameron Ruthstrom Tania Salgado Romero Alexa Santamaria Katie Satterfield 175
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy NTc5NA==