Cosplay is such a wonderful and creative form of art. Unfortunately, there are a lot of cosplay missconceptions, and disambiguation is needed in many cases to help those who are new to the hobby or just want to know a bit more about it in order to understand this wonderful world of fabric, wigs and strange shapes.
As soon as you are wearing something which looks different from your high street fashion shop people will put you in one or another category. The truth is, there are many movements out there that involve dressing differently from your standard human being. I am assuming that you already know what is cosplay and its terminology so here I am going to explain a few things that aren’t or don’t necessarily have anything to do with cosplay.
Cosplay missconceptions and disambiguation
Cosplay (コスプレ kosupure) usually refers to the act of dressing in a costume to recreate a character. This character is usually from a work of fiction . Many cosplayers create their own costumes but they can also buy them. The word cosplay comes from the term costume and play. Cosplayers usually perform and act as their character. They can come from anime, manga, films, TV series, videogames or virtually anything. Basically, a cosplayer would be a person that dresses up like a character he or she loves. Saying this, some people still may find it confusing or may have a misleaded idea of it.
Cosplay vs Fancy dress
I have told you that cosplayers dress up, I bet you do that in Halloween too, so what is the difference? Distinguishing cosplay and fancy dress can be confusing for many people. There are some characteristics that make them different. In general, cosplays are self-made and they try to be as accurate to the original source as possible. This includes moving and acting like your character or even memorising a set of lines or poses that will go with your character. Furthermore, cosplayers usually feature high quality wigs, contact lenses and make up characterizations that often make them look extremely accurate to the original source. Their budget for a cosplay is usually much much higher than what you would spend on a costume for a party.
Finally, you will usually see cosplayers at conventions and cons as opposed to parades. Cosplayers rarely wear their costumes outside a convention or a photoshoot, althought they may be seen entertaining children or cheering up kids in hospitals.
Cosplay and lewds
One of the missconceptions about cosplay is that people believe cosplaying involves some kind of nudity. This is not true. Some cosplayers may choose to portray characters with less clothing or make photoshoots in lingerie. They may also adapt a costume to show more skin or make it more sexy. Every cosplayer decides what to wear and how to wear it. It is their own choice and it will depend on the preference of the cosplayer.
You are free to adapt a dress or create your own version of a character. However, not everybody will make this type of adjustment to their cosplay. On the contrary, some people will instead adapt a costume to show less skin or even wear a Hijabi or veil over their hair to fit their religion. You are free to change your cosplay to your likes or needs. Noone should stop you nor force you to wear something you don’t feel comfortable with. Also, noone should be shamed for choosing to do so either.
We are not professionals!
Another thing I hear a lot about cosplay is people believing that cosplayers get paid for wearing these costumes. This is totally untrue! I have gone to many many conventions and entered many competitions. Nobody paid me to do it. As everybody else, I started very small using clothes from my wardrobe and later on I improved and got much better at crafting dresses and armours. Nobody taught me how to do it and definitely nobody paid me for it. One thing that you hear a lot from new cosplayers is “but you are a professional, aren’t you”. I’m afraid you are wrong. In order to be a professional you should be able to make a living out of cosplay and get a regular salary. Surprise, surprise, most cosplayers, like myself have a day job, and they spend their free time and savings doing this hobby. Some of us just have been doing it for a while, that’s all. I myself entered my first competition not knowing much about what I was doing. Even now I keep committing lots of mistakes.
However, but some people may get a bit of cash doing something related to cosplay. For example, I create downloadable patterns and planners. Sometimes I sell prints as well, but it is highly unlikely that you will be making a living from cosplay unless you are really really famous, really really good and spend lots and lots of time creating new content. If you are lucky enough a convention may invite you to an event and pay for your stay and some shops may sponsor some of your materials, but that’s all. Cosplay is a hobby, not a job, and you will probably spend more money on it than you will get back.
We are not an urban tribe either
There are some movements or urban tribes that are sometimes associated to cosplay but are subcultures in themselves. Examples of these are Goths, Visual K, Steampunk, Pin ups or Gothic lolita fashions. Some people may think that these people are cosplayers as well but they aren’t. At least not all the time. A character from a fandom can belong to one of these subgenres or can be adapted to suit one of these subgenres but they are fashion movements on themselves, so it is important not to be mistaken.
Most of the time the wearers have their own dressing styles and they are not based on a fandom. In fact, there are specialised conventions for some of these movements. Although you can sometimes find people dressed in these styles in comic and manga conventions and their clothes may look extravagant to you, it is the way they dress! A cosplayer won’t go to the shop to buy a loaf of bread wearing a cosplay. Sorry to disappoint you, I wear jeans and t-shirts on my everyday life.
Reenactment and folklore
Yet another movement that involves dressing up is reenactment. As opposed to everything else a reenactor will be using historically accurate costumes to represent a time in history. They usually do this to raise awareness and share their historical knowledge with adults and kids. There are also folkloric groups that will dress in traditional clothing to preserve the traditions of their countries. Sometimes they will even dance and sing songs from a long time ago. They take it very seriously and they are not dressed in fancy dresses. In fact, some of them may be wearing pieces of clothing which are extremely delicate, expensive, and sometimes extremely old. They are not wearing costumes!
Hopefully now you will be able to spot a cosplayer when you see it. An easy way to know is to see if there is a convention nearby because you will rarely see a cosplayer wearing a cosplay outside a convention unless they are going to a photoshoot. If you decide to join us and need some inspiration for your next cosplay make sure to check my cosplay pattern collection. I can even give you some advice on where to start. It is fun!
I also have an account to support me on Ko-Fi if you want. It will help me keep writing tutorials and creating new cosplays. A nice comment is always the best support.
