Tag Archives: Resident Evil

WonderCon: Talking with Cosplay Fans (Day 1)

We love talking with fans. They all have unique backgrounds and stories to tell. Here are some folks we talked with on day 1 of WonderCon 2012

00:00 – Lady Loki tries to hold up her costume and says she loves the evil aspect about her character

01:15 – Sally Jupiter (Watchmen) loves her spunky personality and says she loved the movie even though there wasn’t a giant squid.

02:59 –  Introspective White Emo Ranger explains his character is lost in the UK and how he never gets respect. The man behind the masks discuss working at Knotts Berry Farm and watching his childhood memories go down the drain.

05:01 –  Darth Malgus from the Old Republic does a great job on his ongoing costume

06:37 – David checks out the Game of Thrones booth where they Photoshop your head on a spear

07:17 –  A generic steampunk fan explains the allure of steampunk and his addiction to conventions. He schools me on how dieselpunk differs from steampunk. Check him out at amberstreet.com

09:59 – Belle (Beauty and the Beast) likes her character’s intelligence and ability to find the beauty within. Check her Facebook page here 

11:21 – Genie (Aladdin) loves her character’s comedy. Esmeralda (Hunchback of Notre-Dame)  loves her character’s free spirited nature.

12:45 –  Archangel (as he turned by Apocalypse) loves his character’s look after turned by Apocalypse. He wants to see a Cable movie and reveals who he thinks should lead that role

14:18 – Ash Williams (Evil Dead) loves his character’s groovy attitude and one-liners. When asked about other characters he cosplays, he responds saying his girlfriend and him are working on Jessie and James from Team Rocket. Check out his web series Epic Online and his girlfriend’s charms at oborocharms.com

16:54 –  This fan takes pride in cosplaying Latino characters and decided to do Carlos Oliveira (Resident Evil)

18:27 –  Jill Valentine (Resident Evil) is a true gamer who loves independent characters. She’s a graphic designer that drew inspiration from the Metal Gear and Legend of Zelda series

20:07 – This young man proves all you need is passion to come up with a fresh interpretation of a comic favorite, Silver Surfer.

22:21 –  A luchador fan loves all the fantasy and theatrics of wrestling.

23:55 – The American McGee’s Alice takes a darker approach to the tale.

26:18 –  Dr. Who loves the series because they can revive the series and use any actor they want. As a history student, he hopes to teach or use his knowledge for law enforcement.

27:38 – Rainbow Dash loves her character’s cockiness. Her costume was took a great investment of time to make, especially the wig. Her and Princess Celestia share a story about having breakfast at a business convention full of serious professionals in suits.

29:25 – An ewok and Hawkgirl walk into a bar…

31:22 – Khaleesi Daenerys Targaryen (Game of Thrones) convinces me that I might be missing out on a great show

32:24 – Gambit decided to come to WonderCon all the way from Vancouver, BC.. As a costume maker, one of his most laborious projects was cutting out scales for an Aquaman suit.

2011 Long Beach Comic Convention: Talking with Cosplay Fans

Earlier this year, we gave you guys an intimate look at cosplay fans of the Los Angeles Anime Expo. Well, I hope you didn’t think we’d leave you hanging with the Long Beach Comic Convention, because we did it again!

Have a look and discover what cosplay fans are all about as we ask them questions like what makes the Long Beach Comic Convention different from others, why they love the characters they cosplay, how long their customes took to make, why DC Comics doesn’t release as many movies as Marvel, and what they do for a living. Notice how popular steampunk costumes have become?

00:00 The Joker explain who she is and why it’s fun to be crazy. It’s interesting that she references Batman as a creation by Christopher Nolan rather than Bob Kane. She always weighs in on Twilight versus the Avengers. Don’t try to find her online because she’s got tough security settings.
02:10 John Stewart (Justice League Unlimited) loves being one of DC’s first black characters
03:55 Ash Williams (Evil Dead II)
04:58 Bloodsucka Jones gives us the heads up on the convention being a place to pickup girls
05:42 An rebel X-wing pilot talks about George Lucas’ tweaks to the video releases
08:15 An attorney cosplays Superman and talks about the character being inspirational, leading by example, the DC Comics reboot, and why DC Comics hasn’t made as many movies as Marvel Comics
11:05 Wonder Woman
12:23 a storm trooper tries to take down Felix the Cat
12:49 a steampunk couple explains the allure of steampunk and the convenience of the Long Beach Comic Convention being close to home

00:00 Boba Fett, intergalactic booty hunter, talks about why he’s the 1%, all the girls he’s pulling, and gives advice to the president
01:07 An amazing Deadmau5 helmet that took 10 months to make by a film and visual effects student. Follow him on twitter: https://twitter.com/#!/pwnch
01:58 A computer science student talks about his original character, Ordo Mando, and the challenges of using fiber glass and resin. He mentions deconstructing the helmet taking awhile due to many screws. Check out the forum that helped him make his costume: http://405th.com/
03:40 An insurance claims negotiator cosplays a dalek from Dr. Who and promotes her fiance’s comic book site: Old Dying Kitty Comics
05:22 Captain America gives advice for the president
06:28 An English major graduate student cosplays Henchman 21 from the Venture Brothers and talks about Long Beach Comic Convention being great for checking out panels
08:01 A human services major student cosplays Lina Inverse from Slayers and gives advice for the president and predicts the outcome of a Jersey Shore versus Twilight fight
10:25 Chun-li from the Anime Expo cosplays Jill Valentine from Resident Evil
11:45 Daft Punk
13:05 A geek squad agent (Best Buy) cosplays a more obscure character, Jared Nomak (Blade 2), and shares his thoughts on Steve Jobs’ legacy

00:00 Steampunk cosplay fan talks about her outfit ingredients: Nerf gun, cookie cutter
01:23 Sexy Colonel Sanders and a KFC chicken drumstick. This was my favorite for sure. There isn’t any explanation needed. I even asked the couple if the idea was ironic. I know fast food always gets a bad rap and I initially suspected the couple might have actually been vegetarian. It turns out they’re just fans of the Colonels wonderful recipe.
02:33 A very nervous John Egbert struggles to answer questions. I guess we caught him off guard.

A Look At Cosplay Fans (Los Angeles Anime Expo 2011)

This year, I attended my first Anime Expo at the Los Angeles Convention Center. I had a brief love affair with anime during high school but I have since been a bit out of touch with the latest franchises and hottest series. The wonderful thing about expos is that there really are no qualifications into getting in besides your ticket and an open mind. One can visit to see characters they love have developed or discover and fall in love with new ones. The Los Angeles Anime Expo is North America’s biggest convention that caters to hardcore fans and recent converts alike. One of the distinct features of an anime expo is that the show isn’t just made up of vendors, publishers, and creators. The fans play a huge role in creating a world that attendees are transported to once they enter the building and sky’s the limit when it comes to how far some fans will go to express how much much they love the genre.

Here are some things I discovered while at the Anime Expo, watching and talking to cosplay fans

Disconnect from reality

Anime has a huge following but relative to live action, it’s fan base is still considered minor. When you think about it, anime isn’t very different. It’s all about story telling. Unlike western cartoons and animation, there’s an anime series for every genre one could ask for: sci-fi, love, action, adventure, comedy, and that other category (the one with tentacles and other interesting visuals). The great part about a scene that’s so big is that outsiders like myself can’t even tell the difference. Once you take the red pill,  even security guards, janitors, and information booth attendants look like they are cosplaying!

Come as you are

Anime comes in all different forms. Artists embrace liberties to alter your notion of realism with elements like gravity defying hair, disproportionate female measurements, vibrant eye colors, vampire fangs,  giant impractical weapons… just search youtube for clips and you’ll get the point. Humans, in contrast, are pretty boring. We come in a few sizes and colors and that’s it. The key part of making a great cosplay outfit is really ignoring any of your limitations. Disregard differences in height, weight, skin tone, age, sex, cup size (In fact, NEVER get implants for any reason. It will just look even more silly if you are cosplaying), ethnicity, and MOST of all, don’t be discouraged to cosplay if you have braces. Regarding age, it actually seems the younger you are, the more drive you have at making an awesome costume. I was totally blown away discovering that high school students were making such detailed, professional looking costumes. Maybe there’s a connection between growing up and losing a connection with dreaming.

You don’t need THAT much time to make your costume

Some of THE best costumes/makeup I saw were done by fans that claimed the time they spent was only days. Don’t listen to what Hollywood tells you. All the required materials can be found at your local Michaels/Home Depot! The most important ingredient in your costume is sheer determination. If that means calling sick from your H&M part time job or missing a day of class to complete your costume, it will be worth it. Honestly though, some costumes obviously require more time than others. I met one fellow who cosplayed a Space Marine Scout who spent two months making his awesome costume. It definitely turned heads. On the flip side, the most affordable costumes I saw included a simple inkjet print and some tape to cover your face (I’m looking at you Mr. Trollface)

Mashups = fun!

My biggest takeway from the Anime Expo was discovering the Pokemen. That’s not a typo! I’m talking about the fit Asian guys who wear bright colors, suspenders, and wafer sunglasses. Who says you can’t add your own twist on a series.

Mobility is inversely related to costume appeal

Let’s face it: there are a lot of guys into photography, and what do guys LOVE? Duh! Girls cosplaying. This is Los Angeles. Fashion is always evolving. We’ve seen attractive people in those same outfits our favorite celebrities rock. But the Anime Expo is like an alternate fashion show for outfits that will never make it to retailers. So if we see fantasy become reality, we are most certainly obligated to document it. If you’ve invested enough time and resources into your costume, chances are people will stop you to take pictures and this is how that goes:

Me: “Awesome work! Mind if I take a picture?”

Fan: “Sure”

Me: “Great… 1 sec”

(30 seconds to pull out phone from pocket and switch to camera mode or 1 minutes to put down backpack and take out camera out)

Me: “Cool! 1 sec”

(5 shots quickly taken that all look identical)

Me: “Oh shoot! I had it on the wrong setting. Can I redo those shots?”

Just remember: that exact scene will happen with multiple people all starting at different times. Looking for the most popular person on the floor? Just stand still and look for the person with the biggest crowd around him/her looking around in all angles in confusion trying to figure out which camera to pose for.

Sorry ladies. The ratio of topless guys with 6-packs to pretty girls in costume is roughly 0:(pretty girls in costume)

Have fun

Trolling is not allowed! If you think there’s any costume that you can’t do, you’re doing it wrong! One of my favorites was a mid twenties red-head guy who cosplayed Misty from Pokemon. Check out the video after the break for some Q & A with cosplay fans.