Cinephilia

Tell us a little bit about yourself!
Let’s start with my name: I’m Shaz! I’m 22 years old and I’m gonna start my second semester studying graphic design in LASALLE College of the Arts.

Once I graduate, I plan on joining a big company like Ogilvy—I’m actually hoping to intern there this summer—to do advertising and copywriting. I love playing with words, and it’s something I try to incorporate in my design work, such as with typography.

And how has school been so far?
Honestly, I thought it would be more… It’s fun, don’t get me wrong, but the critique we get is very harsh; everybody has a different eye for design so you can’t please everyone.

When I ask lecturers on advice on my work, I kind of have to take everything with a pinch of salt because my style might not be the same as theirs. What I’ve learnt in my years studying design is that if I really like my work, I should just continue doing it no matter what. Others can help me make tweaks, but if they completely dismiss what I’m proud of and enjoy doing, I’ll just keep going anyway. I had to learn that the hard way though, through a lot of tears (laughs).

When I’m not in school, I would be…
Watching movies! I spend a lot of my weekends going to The Projector, or any theatre honestly, just to watch movies. I have this thing with my best friend, Jeena, where we have to watch a movie every time we go out. It’s so fun to rate and discuss it afterwards. It’s also quite an escape.

In fact, I just watched Baby Girl today—it was a bit like soft porn and the plot wasn’t that great. Plus, there were so many old people in it so I was a bit confused, but the male lead was hot (laughs).

What’s your all-time favourite movie?
White Chicks! I can recite the whole movie.

Share one thing people are shocked to find out about you.
This is a bit dark, but I have terrible social anxiety. On the outside, I appear very bubbly and make friends easily. Whenever I meet new people, I will introduce myself and initiate conversations. But I actually hate going to places that I don’t know or am not familiar with, and socialising is super nerve-wracking to me.

But I feel that I have to put myself out there first so that people at least know I exist, and they don’t judge me, so I’ll force myself to be like, “Hi, I’m here, make friends with me.” Because if I keep myself in this little bubble and be afraid, I’ll continue to feel like this the whole time and I’ll always be uncomfortable.

Any manifestations for 2025?
This year, I need to get a good internship. I need to get a boyfriend—no lah, a boyfriend’s not on the top of the list, but it’ll be nice (laughs). Maybe get fit, eat more, and journal more. If I have more money, maybe go to therapy.

One last important question. How would you describe yourself in three words?
Loyal, funny, and versatile.