ToyCon2012 - Cosplay Competition

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First of all, let me clear things up.  I am no expert in cosplaying.  I haven't actually tried being into one myself.  But I do appreciate a good and artistically crafted one... From the internet, here are just some of the information I gathered on this rather interesting form of art.

Sources: cosplay@wiki and Cosplay@howto 

Cosplay (コスプレ kosupure), short for "costume play",is a type of performance art in which participants wear costumes and accessories to represent a specific character or idea. Cosplayers often interact to create a subculture centred around role play. A broader use of the term "cosplay" applies to any costumed role play in venues apart from the stage, regardless of the cultural context.

Favorite sources include manga and anime, comic books, video games and films. Any entity from the real or virtual world that lends itself to dramatic interpretation may be taken up as a subject. Inanimate objects are given antrhopomorphic anthropomorphic forms and it is not unusual to see genders switched, with women playing male roles and vice versa. There is also a subset of cosplay culture centered around sex appeal, with cosplayers specifically choosing characters that are known for their attractiveness and/or revealing (even explicit) costumes.

Notable cosplayers

This is Alodia (right) and her sister Ashley

• Francesca Dani, an Italian cosplayer, net idol and model.
• Daisuke Enomoto, a Japanese entrepreneur, was scheduled to be the fourth private citizen to be taken into space by Space Adventures in October 2006. He intended to dress for the ride wearing the Gundam costume of Char Aznable but failed to pass physical examinations.
• Alodia Gosiengfiao, Filipina cosplayer and model. She was Animax's first Levi's "kawaii girl" winner in the last episode of Mad Mad Fun and ranked no. 87 in FHM's 2009 poll of the Sexiest Women in the World.
• Liana Kerzner, Canadian co-hosts the talk show Ed's Night Party. Famous for her character-based costumes, she is often a special guest at fan conventions across North America.
• Suzanne Muldowney, most famous for her Underdog portrayals, is a fixture in New York parades, conventions, and entertainment shows.
• Yuichiro "Jienotsu" Nagashima, Japanese kickboxer and martial artist. One of Japan's top ranked kickboxers, Nagashima makes all his entrances and publicity appearances for K-1 dressed as different female anime characters, accompanied by cosplaying girls.
• Lee Teng-hui, the first popularly elected president of the Republic of China (Taiwan), dressed up as the fictional character Edajima Heihachi of the anime series Sakigake!! Otokojuku.

Want to try cosplaying?  Here are some pointers:

First, firmly decide who you want to cosplay. Do you just want a costume to wear around town, for fun, or do you want to wear it to an Anime Convention or other big event?  

Decide how you want to go about getting your costume. Consider your budget and time allowance. If you're short on time, making your costume from scratch may not be the best idea. 

If you have decided a character/person to cosplay and choose to make the costume yourself; it's a good start to make a list of what you have to make, how you shall make it and what you need to buy in order to make it. For example, if your character is wearing a jacket and pants; what color are they? Which kind of fabric should you use? Are the clothes baggy or tight?

No matter if you buy the costume, you probably have hair, make up and maybe even lenses to buy and fix. Study your characters hair, eye color, and shape of face. Shall you use a wig or not? How should you style your hair? What kind of make up would be fitting and make your face look more like the character?

It helps to sketch up your character from different angles.                                                      It gives you a good view on how the character really looks.

Decide how much time (and money) you should spend on making the costume. The more difficult and detailed the costume is, the more time you'll need to make it. Give yourself more time than you think you need and be really realistic.

Practice on the make up, taking and out the lenses and fixing your hair (or the wig). It will take time to make it good, so be patient and try different methods and products.

When everything is done, put everything on and look in the mirror. Do you look like the character/person? If no, try to figure out why and consider making some changes. It's a good idea to ask a friend or someone else you trust if you look like the character and what you could change. Tell them to be honest, that's why you're asking.

Be confident cosplaying. If you want, you could practice poses the character does a lot. You could also study the way the character walk and/or move, and try to imitate it. It's completely optional.

Make your grand debut! Whether your walking around town, or a party, or a convention, make sure you're having fun with it!

Have fun with it! If you don't have fun, you're not cosplaying the right way!

In the recently held 11th Philippine Toy Convention held last June in SM Mega Mall Trade Hall, My eyes feasted on lots of Cosplayers who joined the individual Cosplay competition.  Here are some of the pictures I took with them.  ALERT though, you will see a lot of me too... hahaha

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This one WON the competition, Master Pogi!!!