Shivasena’s journey into cinematography began not with a film school or a studio set but with the quiet patience of a man waiting for morning light to fall just right. His interest grew from a simple observation: photos taken at tourist spots become memories that people hold on to, and he was fascinated by how a single frame can preserve a moment. That early curiosity, the habit of watching how light behaves across a surface, became the foundation of his visual instinct. His formal cinematography path began with Atharva in 2018 and continued with Chemistry of Kariayappa, Salaga, Somu Sound Engineer, Bheema, and now Maarnami releasing on November 28. He is also part of the upcoming City Lights with his frequent collaborator Vijay Kumar. Across these films, one guiding principle has remained the same: let the frame breathe.
“I liked observing how shadows behaved and how light shaped a story. With my family in government jobs, my inclination was towards a formal education in photography, and I wanted to do a diploma course, but it did not work out. Instead, I got my schooling under Sathya Hegde sir and Sudhakar S Raj sir. Sathya sir taught me raw location-driven realism. Sudhakar sir taught me portrait discipline, how skin tones respond, how eyes hold light. Their approaches shaped my visual spine.”
Most of his works have a strong practical light philosophy. “Reality has its own light. Natural fall off, ambient bounce, colour temperature, these are honest values. I try not to disturb what the space is already giving me. When light behaves naturally, performances also settle naturally,” he explains.
Shivasena shares that director Rishith Shetty's Maarnami is painted on a complete coastal canvas. "Ritvvikk and Chaithra J Achar’s Deeksha bring to life a story that moves between tenderness and tempers. The coast changed everything. It has a shifting palette. Blue haze in the mornings, harsh mid-day whites, golden hour diffusion, and that soft twilight where the sky becomes a giant reflector. You cannot fight that geography. You have to surrender to it,” says Shivasena.
He credits the Maarnami team, including director Rishith, production desginer M Varadaraj Kamath, and costume designer Varsha Acharya, for shaping that coastal world that lets light move freely. “We worked with minimal artificial interference. Sun mimicking units, warm practicals, and soft sources blended with the environment. Our rule was simple, even if the frame becomes cinematic, the truth of the coast should not be compromised,” points out Shivasena, who reveals that the most challenging aspect of filming Maarnami was the night shoots.
“Night exteriors demand controlled shadows and measured contrast. Working with Vijay Kumar gave me a grip on night grammar. Both Maarnami, and the upcoming City Lights are night heavy. I am also working on Gurunandan’s Mr Jack, a real incident drama requiring grounded visual language.”
Parting with a poignant message, Shivasena says, “Light is memory. My job is just to honour it.”