Shanna Sivakumar
A once in a life time interview with our very own reviews editor!
By Shanna Sivakumar
Shanna Sivakumar is a senior at the University of Minnesota studying Psychology with a minor in Film Studies. She is also the Music & Reviews Editor at The Wake Magazine. I sat down as her for a Q&A this week because no actual artists were available… we should be back to our regularly scheduled programming for our next issue.
Do you mind if I record this interview?
S: Oh, not at all. Sorry, this is my first time doing this sort of thing. I’ve never interviewed myself. I’ve never been interviewed.
How did you get interested in The Wake Magazine?
S: Ok, so, sophomore year of college, two of my roommates were interns at The Wake and dragged me to a meeting at the beginning of the year. At the time, I was a little too shy to pick up a pitch, but I got to see how a student-run magazine worked and thought it was a great way to get involved on campus. And then, junior year, I decided to apply to be an intern. I’ve always loved pop culture and media, so I chose music/reviews and now I’m here, I guess?
Why choose Music/Reviews?
S: I love media and entertainment. I don’t know if there’s anything more to it. Anyone who has gotten to know me knows that I adore talking about my favorite songs, movies, and TV shows. And despite pursuing a minor in film studies, my first love has always been music. This position is everything I’ve wanted, because now I get to write about these things I love rather than subjecting my friends and family to hear me talk about Beyoncé’s “RENAISSANCE” one more time. Anyways, the previous Reviews Editor graduated last spring so the position was open and I was the only intern, so when I got the text saying the position’s mine if I’d like, I immediately said yes. Also I love reviews. I love our little four pages at the very end of the magazine. And to be honest, I thought this position would maybe require less work in comparison to Cities or Voices… and then I realized I was responsible for the Q&A. But honestly, I love doing the Q&A. Once I work through my social anxiety, I assume it’ll be even better.
Your favorite class so far?
S: I’m taking Screenwriting this semester and I absolutely love it. I originally chose my film minor just so that I could take this course and honestly? Worth it. It’s a class of less than 20 students so it’s quite intimate. I recently had a bit of my screenplay critiqued and that was kind of a… vulnerable experience. But I’m glad I did it because I learned a lot.
What music are you listening to right now?
S: I would be lying to my core if I didn’t mention the new NCT 127 album, so there’s that. But this summer has largely been my Beyoncé summer. I’ve seriously nosedived deep into her discography so I’m guessing most of my Spotify Wrapped this year will be Beyoncé related. But a couple songs I have on repeat right now are “SUMMER” by The Carters, “Lipstick Lover” by Janelle Monae, and “Love Of My Life” by Queen. There’s a lot more, but I’ll keep it down to my top three for now. Except I have to include a bonus track, “Special Affair” by The Internet.
What do you want to do with your time at The Wake this year?
S: I guess— I hope to convey my genuine love for entertainment and media. I hope every student writer gets to write about something they love, and that local artists can be uplifted here at The Wake! And a final message to all the music lovers out there: stop hiding and start writing! Come pitch that new King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard album. From boygenius to Sufjan Stevens to the latest Marvel movie installment, I would love to read it all.
My top 5 movies (in no particular order)
BlacKkKlansmen (2018) — Spike Lee I remember watching this movie (which is currently streaming on Netflix!) and about 30 minutes in, I was like, “this is some good writing.” Later on, I looked up the film on Google or Wikipedia and saw that it got the Academy Award for Best Writing. Well, that checks out. I really love the writing– especially the way the writers were able to include humor within such serious subject matter. Also the entire climactic scene is done so well… ugh I love this movie. The only critique is probably the portrayal of a policeman as the protagonist. And while I didn’t view the film as copaganda by any means, I could see how others might have.
Ladybird (2017) — Greta Gerwig One of my favorite movie genres would have to be the coming-of-age indie films. Ladybird is so well written and is geared towards anyone with a complicated motherdaughter relationship. Somehow, Greta Gerwig managed to encapsulate universal girlhood, to the point where it transcends race or socioeconomic status. Also, there’s one particular scene (at the airport) that never fails to make me shed a tear.
96 (2018) — C. Premkumar This is a Tamil movie about two people seeing each other after two decades and they used to be in love with each other. It’s simple and beautiful and dialogue-heavy. It always reminds me of the beauty of human connection. And much like Ladybird, it’s got an airport scene that makes me cry.
Super deluxe (2019) — Thiagarajan Kumararaja Easily one of my favorite Tamil films ever. Such beautiful cinematography— every frame could be a painting. It’s funny, it’s nostalgic, and it’s hyperlink cinema— where every story eventually connects with the other.
Pariyerum perumal (2018) — Mari Selvaraj While Pariyerum Perumal is such a well done film portraying one man’s fight against the caste system in India, part of the reason I love this film is for the main actors, Kathir and Anandhi(<3). But aside from that, this movie is such a strong directorial debut, filled with symbolism while still leaning into the dramatics that are a staple in Indian cinema.
My top 5 “no skip” albums (in particular order)
RENAISSANCE — Beyoncé
AM — Arctic Monkeys
Madharasapattinam (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) — G.V. Prakash
NCT RESONANCE Pt.1 The 2nd Album — NCT
WHEN WE ALL FALL ASLEEP, WHERE DO WE GO? — Billie Eilish
My top 5 TV shows:
Crashing
Fleabag
Stranger Things (specifically the first 2 seasons)
I Told Sunset About You
The Office (lol)