Our website has been thrilled with the addition of our newest correspondent. For over a year, she has been doing great work with our team; helping us cover the biggest events in the country and making special appearances as a special guest and judge. And just like the first signs of spring bring in new life and hope, Shizu is a breath of fresh air that brings excitement and promise of a new year waiting to unfold.
Describing herself as energetic both in and out of cosplay, Shizu has been a great fit to the arkadymac.com team as we cover events all over the metro and beyond. “I can definitely say that being in cosplay makes me more confident and energetic,” she tells us as she began working with us on her very first coverage at Cosplay Carnival 2024. A year has passed and she has not looked back, racking up eight major event coverages and appearances with plenty of genki left to spare. “Going out on coverage lets me explore and enjoy events and their attractions, and I’m happy when I get to work with my onee-sans and photographers at arkadymac.”
Her hard work, experience and enthusiasm has earned the attention of the community, and she has been invited to be a guest and judge at events, as well as putting in some memorable appearances at events like PNU NAMI Matsuri, The Demon Slayer Exhibition Opening, and The Studio Ghibli Weekend by The Japan Foundation, Manila.
Shizu became fascinated with cosplay when she found someone portraying one of her favorite characters. “I saw a really cute Noelle cosplayer, and she really brought that character from Genshin Impact to life,” she fondly remembers. Inspired with this discovery, she too set off on her own journey into cosplay. She then started to cosplay characters she feel she is similar to in real life. “I often push through with a character if I’m really attached to them, or if a lot of people recommend them to me due to similarities, like Yachi from Haikyuu, Robin from Honkai Star Rail, and Sua from Alien Stage.
When we asked her about the good things that have happened because of cosplay, her face brightened up instantly. “I’ve discovered a lot of friends. There are some I’ve grown close to, to the point that they even help me with my studies, accompany me on normal days when I have no one to hang out with, and even provide support to other things like my business. I’ve encountered so many good friends just through cosplaying, and I appreciate that a lot.”
Shizu firmly believes that cosplay can play a positive role in someone’s life. “Cosplay can help people as a way to express themselves and their love for a hobby or a character. For me, cosplay was something that gave me the opportunity to learn new skills like make-up and wig styling that I very much enjoy.”
Aside from cosplay, Shizu enjoys nail art and singing. “I aspire to be able to express these hobbies through cosplay as well,” she adds. ” I aspire to be able to use cosplay as a way to inspire people, and I hope someday I’ll be able to perform during a convention.”
While still the in springtime of life, Shizu already has set her eyes on her future. “As for my dreams; I wish to be either a lawyer or a psychologist, with the intention to be able to help people with their problems. All my dreams really revolve around being able to help others, since it’s what makes me satisfied!”
While she still has a lot of things about cosplay to learn and discover, Shizu wants to reach out to those who are still new to cosplay: “Don’t worry about having to keep up with the trends, and just cosplay who you want to. If you’re ever worried about cosplaying a character you love but they’re too underrated, don’t worry about it. It might not receive as much attention as when you’d cosplay a known character; but it’ll definitely receive double the love from the fellow fans that love the character as well.”
As we round up our time talking with Shizu, she wanted to express her gratitude to the ones who have made her cosplay journey possible. “I’d like to thank my parents for supporting me in cosplay. My thanks to my friend Shioo Ju for taking me to conventions, and then to everyone in our MHA CG from 2024. It was chaotic, but they’ve been a big part of my cosplay life ever since.”
As she starts off another year of being a full-pledged correspondent for the arkadymac.com team, we hope you can keep supporting Shizu as she helps us cover even more events and have an even bigger role in our community.
Many thanks to our photographers: Marvin, Marivic, Camille, and Ru for their wonderful photos of Shizu this past year.
And thank you for dropping by. Do visit us again for more cosplay features here at arkadymac.com.
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