After braving a packed trolley ride, massive SDCC crowds, and a map we couldn’t quite figure out, the three of us (Jada, Elizabeth, and Kathryn) managed to be the very last people into the Cosplay 101 panel before they closed the doors. We had to stand for the whole panel; totally worth it.
From the first documented cosplayer (Foster J. Ackerman, at the first Wondercon in 1939) to today, cosplay is a world that welcomes people from all genres and with any amount of experience and skill. At Cosplay 101, Catherine M Fisher, Mike Schiffbauer, Bob Mogg, and Melissa Gene Meyer talked a little about how they got into cosplaying, resources for the beginning cosplayer, and various things you need to keep in mind when making your own costume.
We’re living in a great time for cosplayers, especially compared to twenty or so years ago when your options for getting a picture to base a design around were limited to hitting pause at the right point and then drawing fast. The panel mentioned support sites like Replica Prop Forum on Facebook, an excellent source for ideas and tutorials. The Iron Tailor (theirontailor.blogspot.com) is another good resource, as is Pepakura, a program that allows you to create your own paper models from 3D data (find out more at pepakurapros.com). Even a simple google search under a new (to you) material will turn up an endless supply of online reference photos and tutorials.
Supplies for your costume can be found pretty much everywhere, from specialized markets online, to flea markets and junk stores (the popularity of steampunk is apparently bringing younger people back to antique stores). The scrapbook supply section of craft stores like Michaels has plenty of intricately-crafted items that are great for the fine details in your costumes. Bob talked about breaking apart household items for materials, mentioning that taking apart a coffee maker produced a really nice piece, so nice that he’s now too intimidated to use it. “Bob,” said Mike, “will be featured on the next episode of Hoarders.”
The panel talked a little bit about costume contests. One of the first things you need to do when entering a competition is to know your judges; not all of them will be swayed by the level of applause in the audience, so a costume that’s a crowd favorite isn’t a guaranteed winner (and be prepared to be gracious to the winners; there’s nothing more frustrating than spending a lot of time on an intricately crafted costume, only to lose to a woman in a bikini and a kid in an Ewok suit). Costumes that are to be worn at SDCC Masquerade are ABSOLUTELY NOT to be worn around the rest of the convention. The judges don’t want to risk being influenced by seeing a costume too early, and they also like “the big reveal” of a costume at Masquerade, rather than seeing a costume that’s already been paraded around the rest of the convention; getting caught by the judges wearing a costume entry before the competition actually starts will get you disqualified.
When designing a costume, keep in mind where it’s going to be worn: a thirty-second walk across the Masquerade stage requires an entirely different level of craftsmanship from a floor costume worn in a crowd. Melissa mentioned a costume of Frozone from the Incredibles, where the cosplayer had actually included a design element to make biological functions easier (the phrase “zipper in the crotch” kept coming up at random times during the presentation.) There were also a few tips and warnings about needing to stay hydrated and cool when wearing your costume for an extended time. Stroking out when wearing a heavy foam costume is a great way to ruin your convention experience, so the panelists recommended getting one of those fans used in inflatable Halloween costumes for ventilation, along with portable cool-packs and even a hidden camelback for water.
Lastly, the panel also touched on the important concept of “Cosplay Is Not Consent.” No matter how skimpy the costume, everyone is required to respect people’s personal boundaries. And remember, there are actually folks out there who may not realize that they’re being creepy and making someone uncomfortable, so it’s important to say something when that happens. Cosplayers should try to look out for each other, and be ready to step in when someone is acting inappropriately.
If you thought this was interesting, check out Cosplay 102 at 11 AM tomorrow.
