This week on “World of Jenks,” documentary filmmaker Andrew Jenks followed around professional cheerleader, Jessi Peralta. This is the second year that Peralta has tried out for the Tennessee Titans.
When Jenks first meets Peralta, he chews a piece of gum for fresh breath and fixes his hair to impress Peralta.
Such a cliché.
Peralta is on the “tryout diet,” which consists of not eating in hopes of looking skinnier. She is nervous because nothing guarantees her a spot on the team.
I never imagined cheerleading would be so intense. I thought they would look out for the veterans of the team.
The next day, Jenks and Peralta go to practice. Since wearing a crop top and shorts are required, Jenks puts them on.
Later on, Peralta reveals she will be happy as an 80-year-old because people will take her seriously.
This ideal of hers doesn’t make sense. If she wants to be taken seriously, maybe she shouldn’t wear next to nothing for a cheerleading outfit.
Next, Peralta takes Jenks to a Southern style barbeque. Everywhere they go, people keep screaming nasty comments at Peralta and throwing things at her, which makes her shed tears. Jenks is nice enough to defend her.
No one truly knows what people around them are going through. In my eyes, professional cheerleaders have a perfect life. Of course, this isn’t true.
Before becoming a cheerleader, Peralta was on “Dancing with the Stars” and was a backup dancer for Christina Aguilera. She isn’t challenged by cheerleading, but continues to cheer because people are nicer and L.A. turned her into a terrible person.
Surprisingly, the cheerleaders do more than scream, “Go team!” They complete a substantial amount of community service hours, and Peralta says how important that is to her.
Peralta says that because the entertainment industry is self-serving, she loves throwing light on bad situations.
It’s good to see that the cheerleaders like to help others and that they do not care only for themselves.
Luckily, when Peralta performs for her audition, she makes the team.
Next week on “World of Jenks” Jenks follows around British pop star Bebe Brown.
Gabbrielle Joseph can be reached for comment at [email protected]