Research: Interview with Cosplayers

To find out more about Cosplay and the community, I interviewed 3 cosplayers to talk about their experience and opinions.

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Cosplayer 1: High school student from China, cosplay fan, currently thinking of moving to Canada for university; (Female)

1. What is your age? 18

2. How did you know about cosplay and how did you get into this hobby? The first time I went to an anime and game fair I met a lot of cosplayers, I found it really fun and wanted to try it.

3. What was your impression before taking part in it and how did it change after becoming a cosplayer? Before I start on cosplay, I think it’s really cool and unique. After I started cosplaying, I found out that this is really not a simple thing to do, Behind the glam and popularity of the cosplayers, many put in huge effort into it.

4. Who is your favourite character/who are the favourite types of characters you cosplayed /want to cosplay? I’d prefer to cosplay lively and active characters, and those that do not put much emphasis on face shapes or body builds. I feel that I don’t really give out the vibes of the cool characters, and I don’t really monitor my weight, so I’m unsure if I will be able to play these characters well. I really want to try cosplaying charismatic characters, that sounds really cool! When I first started cosplay, I played more female characters, but later I play more male characters. I love handsome guys!

5. When do you cosplay (for posting/anime fair, etc)? Who do you usually cosplay with (your friends or just by yourself)? Anime fairs! Or when I’m out for a movie. I like to cosplay with my friends or I find it really awkward XD

6. How has cosplay changed you? You also mentioned that you stopped doing cosplay recently, why is this so? I learned to design and cut wigs for cosplay, and later I became less enthusiastic because it is too costly and I do not have much time for this.

7. What is your cosplay process like (from costume designing to photo editing)? Which step do you enjoy the most and which step is the most difficult/tedious for you? First I’ll decide on the character I want to play as, and I’ll select costumes and props. After buying the wigs I will cut the wig on my own. I’m not good at doing make-up, so I’ll contact the make-up artists a few weeks before the event, so that on the actual day I can meet them in my costumes to do my make up. I have not really done a proper photo-shooting session, I think the best part for me is selecting the costumes. To me, the most complicated step in cosplay is to cut the wigs, it’s so easy to mess things up! I even found my mum for help when I cut the wigs for the first time.

8. Is there any misconception/prejudice against cosplay that you wish to address? I am not really influenced by it because I have not met anyone that has prejudice against me being a cosplayer. Only my mum thinks that cosplay is kind of a waste of money and time.

(Interviewed on 27 Mar, translated from Chinese)

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Cosplayer 2: High school student from China, cosplay fan, (Female) 1. What is your age? 18

2. How did you know about cosplay and how did you get into this hobby? After I went to an anime fair I became really interested in it. 3. What was your impression before taking part in it and how did it change after becoming a cosplayer? Before I started doing cosplay I think the costumes looks fantastic. After I started it I feel that it is so much more tiring than I thought it would be, and it is way more costly. 4. Who is your favourite character/who are the favourite types of characters you cosplayed /want to cosplay? I favour cute girls the most, I think they suit me.

5. When do you cosplay (for posting/anime fair, etc)? Who do you usually cosplay with (your friends or just by yourself)? (I’ll cosplay) when going to anime fairs or for photo shooting. I like doing cosplay with my friends so that I wouldn’t feel lonely.

6. What is the cosplay community like? There are many people around me who also like cosplay. I think there are lots of good-looking people in this community XD

7. What keeps you continue with this hobby? How has it changed you? (I keep doing cosplay because) some anime really influenced me a lot and I love the characters in it. The most important change would be that I slimmed down.

8. What is your cosplay process like (from costume designing to photo editing)? Which step do you enjoy the most and which step is the most difficult/tedious for you? Buying costumes, wigs, props and shoes. The best part for me is photo-shooting because I can play around and have fun during this session. The most difficult part for me would be photo- editing, I just can’t get the hang of it!

9. Is there any misconception/prejudice against cosplay that you wish to address? Cosplay is still a subculture where there are definitely people who do not accept it. This did not influence me much because people around me are supportive. Some costumes may be exposed or NSFW, that’s because the characters are designed this way. Usually these kind of cosplay would not appear in public events like anime fairs, so I hope that people would not misunderstand cosplay as something improper.

10. If you are asked to recommend cosplay to someone, what would you say? It is fun to play our favourite characters! (People) should really try it if possible.

(Interviewed on 27 Mar, translated from Chinese)

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Cosplayer 3: University student from Singapore, cosplay fan, (Female) 1. What is your age? 19

2. How did you know about cosplay and how did you get into this hobby? I saw a lot of pictures and videos of cosplayers having fun with their friends and I really wanted to dress up and bring my favourite characters to life.

3. What was your impression before taking part in it and how did it change after becoming a cosplayer? I thought that it wouldn’t be too difficult, just buying clothes and a wig. But after starting out I realise there’s a lot of work to be done such as cutting and styling your own wig as well as figuring out the best makeup style for each character.

4. Who is your favourite character/who are the favourite types of characters you cosplayed /want to cosplay? My favourite character to cosplay would be Ciel Phantomhive from black butler, I did two versions of him because his costumes are so pretty and intricate. I like to cosplay characters that I like or with cool designs.

5. Since you like Ciel, how do you feel when you cross-dress to a male character? I feel hella cool! I like to cosplay male characters.

6. What is the cosplay community like? It’s quite accepting in a sense that there are newbies who can relate to you as well as seasoned cosers who have been there for a long time. But it’s also a bit intimidating and hard to integrate into groups of you don’t have a friend to pull you in. 7. How has it changed you? I really appreciate the effort and thought process that comes into costume designing and finding creative ways to make your own props and costumes. It encourages me think out of the box more.

8. What is your cosplay process like (from costume designing to photo editing)? Which step do you enjoy the most and which step is the most difficult/tedious for you? I buy costumes and wigs online then style and alter them if needed. I don’t have a lot of experience so cutting the wig is always stressful as I’m afraid of ruining it. Trying out different makeup styles is the most fun however I find it hard to think of poses for the character.

9. Is there any misconception/prejudice against cosplay that you wish to address? I feel that many people think that cosplayers are just weebs and there’s a negative connotation towards being a cosplayer. But I honestly think that cosplayers are amazing artists who put so much time and effort into their craft. The amount of dedication and willingness to learn new skills in order to bring their cosplays to the next level is something that should be applauded.

10. If you are asked to recommend cosplay to someone, what would you say? Don’t be afraid to try it out, it’s fun to hang out with like minded individuals (after covid times) and it makes you feel cool :)

(Interviewed on 27 Mar, original answer in English)

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Here is the full record of the interview (in the original language and translations).

Cosplay Interview with Translation.pdf

Download PDF • 138KB

Highlights from the Interview:

All cosplayers mentioned that the process is demanding and tiring.

All cosplayers indicated strong interests in anime.

All cosplayers loved the costumes before they started cosplay.

All cosplayers mentioned that they love acting out their favourite characters from anime or other virtual worlds.

All cosplayers do cosplay with their friends, or any others from the community.

All cosplayers mentioned that there are some prejudice against cosplay, including it ‘being a waste of money and time’, ‘being ‘inappropriate’ and that there is a ‘negative connotation towards being a cosplayer’.

We can infer from the responses that some are aware of whether they ‘suit the characters’, in terms of body builds, personality and looks.

(Quotes: ‘I feel that I don’t really give out the vibes of the cool characters, and I don’t really monitor my weight, so I’m unsure if I will be able to play these characters well’ ‘I favour cute girls the most, I think they suit me’ ‘The most important change would be that I slimmed down’)

2 of the cosplayers mentioned that cosplay is expensive.

2 of the cosplayers got to know about cosplay during anime and game-related events.

2 cosplayer specifically mentioned their interest in cross-dressing.

The second cosplayer emphasised that being able to act as her favourite character is enjoyable.

The last cosplayer highlights that cosplay improved on her creativity.