If your child likes movies, he is probably already thinking about becoming a cosplayer (the hero of his favorite film) and joining the ranks of the same enthusiastic young people like him. But parents always think about whether such a hobby will develop into any problems since not all people know what a cosplayer is. What practical advice can be given to beginners and their parents? Let’s get to know more about it.
How it all began
For the New Year celebration, children often choose the costumes of various fairytale heroes, and for them, a fairy tale begins, which does not last long. But if a teenager likes a costume show and wants to extend the fairy tale, he will be interested in learning about cosplayers. These people arrange costume meetings and gatherings, called “cosplay festivals,” all year round. They usually choose heroes of popular movies, anime, or famous computer games.
Cosplay originated in Japan, and the term is an abbreviation for costume play. Initially, it was like a theater imitating Japanese video games, manga or anime, historical and popular films in Japan. Accordingly, initially, the entire entourage was typically Japanese style. As the culture spread to the West, various movements and heroes began to appear.
The most important thing is to show your hero better than others. The idea is to make the hero as similar to the original as possible. In a word, the audience should think that a real hero has come to their performance. In Japan, ready-made costumes for cosplay were initially sold. Still, as the subculture developed, this became unpopular – the “trick” was precisely to create the hero’s image from scratch, with your own hands, down to the smallest details. In addition, to know how to become a cosplayer, you need to study the terminology, vocabulary, and even special signs – badges, keychains, and even dyeing locks of hair in an unusual color.
Tips for parents
In fact, in comparison with many youth subcultures, cosplay and cosplayers are some of the most harmless and friendly. Moreover, it is quite a useful hobby and a nice movement for a teenager to engage in. After all, a passion for films, the desire to create a costume and copy details train perseverance and will, and public appearances at cosplay festivals teach communication and interaction.
You cannot become a good cosplayer without a detailed study of the hero’s history, a thoughtful attitude to his appearance and character. In addition, artistic inclinations will be helpful in any area of life in the future if cosplay does not become a teenager’s hobby. Sometimes, starting as cosplayers, children grow up and move into the category of professional artists and build their careers in an artistic environment.
Of course, everything should be in moderation: a fanatical hobby for cosplay can also be fraught with problems at school or college, among peers, and in material terms, expensive and complex costumes can be overhead. But, again, cosplay is not the worst of leisure activities. And if parents also love cinema like their child, this hobby can become one common affair for the whole family.
Cosplay cheat sheet
To become a really good cosplayer, you need to start by studying the question in detail. This includes the history of cosplay, learning the terms, watching the recordings of festivals, deciding on the topic, and deciding what characters you like the most – an anime character, computer games, or a classic character of the same gender.
It is worth thinking seriously about what kind of character you want to cosplay, since depending on the complexity, both the duration of preparations and the accuracy in the costume and habits will depend.
You will need a full-length photo of the hero in order to recreate the image exactly from head to toe. It will be important to copy the costume and the manner of speech, behavior, habits, and even intonations of the voice.
What else?
It is important to understand one thing only: cosplay is a subculture that takes a lot of time; it requires lots of time and effort since one costume making can take up to six months. Participating in festivals and performances can be costly and not always successful.
Nevertheless, the army of people fond of cosplay is constantly growing, which means people like it. So why not give it a try?
