How NOT to fail at cosplay contests! 😱 

The best tip I got as a cosplay competitor is to just enjoy and have fun. It's just a plus if you win and if you lose, you won't feel bad.

My very first con I cosplayed at I entered a comp. We all spent the time behind stage complimenting and hyping each other up. The actual competition just felt like we were showing our costumes off like a fashion show. We even took a group photo when it was done. I didn't win obv but i definitely didn't feel any sort of doubts about cosplay afterwards and left feeling super proud of myself

Thank you both for all that you do! My friends and I enjoy your videos SO much and get a lot out of them. We are getting ready to try our hands at competition and this was very enlightening.

Thank you! I'm always nervous about doing the competitions. But I think I'll try to have more fun and maybe win something, too!

I entered a contest once, it was a huge deal for me. I wanted the experience and I just wanted to have fun and show off my 2B cosplay I was so proud of. It was fun, and not winning was just fine! Highly recommend if you’re thinking about entering :) Edit: typo

great video! thanks. but i am very shy to go to contests...all times my thoughs " i am not good enought to go"

Thanks so much for the insight

Thanks for the motivation!

My sister and I have yet ro start but a goal is to hopefully one day go to the WCS. I dont care about winning, it just seems so fun and a great experience. But i have yet to start any sewing or anything. Im hoping to be able to start doing something next month 😊

Vielen lieben Dank für das Teilen deiner Gedanken zu dem Thema! Als jemand der die Interaktionen und Menschen bei Wettbewerben über alles liebt und gerne gegen "stärkere" Leute "verliert", möchte ich mich dann doch irgendwann mit hoch zu den "Monstern" kämpfen und meinen Platz dort verdienen c:

Corgi! Corgi! Corgi!

I’ve been thinking about entering the biggest cosplay competition in my country but I’m making my first cosplay so I’m very much a beginner so I’m worried people will discourage me to enter especially because I’m doing Noelle from Genshin Impact which I know is very ambitious. But we’ll see what happens. Thank you for giving me more confidence to still keep going! Update: I won best newcomer!🥹🫶

CORGI!

Corgi

Great video! I've been cosplaying for roughly 10 years now and I think maybe my second or third cosplay I decided to tackle a Monster Hunter set 😅. I entered a competition and came in second place. Which was totally fine and I was really enjoying it, until I walked off the stage. What discouraged me a bit was the judges wanted to see me after I got off the stage to discuss how I made everything. As im explaining things and answering their questions, one of the judges barely glanced at my cosplay and was just very dismissive of me and barely spoke to me. I just assumed he didnt like it, which was fine. As I was walking back to my car, I hear someone screaming "MONSTER HUNTER! WAIT!" It was one of the other judges and she explained how much herself and the other judge enjoyed my costume and trying to decide the first place winner was really hard as it was very close. But the winner did a much better job at sewing her cosplay. She told me that was really the only difference. She also noticed how the one judge treated me and apologized on his behalf. She encouraged me not to let that situation deter me from competing and to keep doing what I do. It was so sweet of her to say that and really motivated me to work a little harder and was such a confidence boost. I have since won many different kinds of awards and enjoy conventions and competing much more now thanks to her. 😊

As someone who has been doing cosplay competitions for a few years now, i have always struggled with performance. I find it really hard to come up with a skit, and when I do research it's really hard to find ideas or inspirations online. I would love to see a video with tips and tricks on planning a cosplay performance :)

We are not the same. I participated in a few contests just because the event tickets were included for free. 😂

I won my first cosplay contest in April, and I was cosplayed as Ashe from Overwatch. I put my soul into making that cosplay, and it felt great to have other people appreciate the hard work as well.

I lost a lot of cosplay competitions. There was one time that there were only 4 competitors and I was 4th 😂 (The only person that lost) But I got my redemption the next event by winning grand champion!

Thanks for the amazing video♥️ can you please make a video about judging cosplay competitions too? Like what you do when you’re judge, what makes a winner stand out, it’s helpful for both judges & cosplayers imo🙏🏻✨

It sounds cliche but the most important tip is definitely to have fun and keep trying. I’ve entered like 6 Cosplay contests throughout the years and the best I’ve gotten is 3rd in the most recent one. I did NOT expect it (I always join just for fun) considering all the other costumes in the competition. I had the most fun in that one, I have a mini performance as I showed off my Cosplay on stage and when the crowd actually cheered, I didn’t care whether or not I won because the cheer was already a win for me, but then they called my name to be 3rd and I froze with joy 😅 So yeah! Bit of a ramble but seriously, join because it’s fun, not because you’re hoping to win :)

I totally agree that there should be more performance based competition options. As someone who is chronically ill & disabled, I can't really make costumes from scratch, but I dont want anyone to feel they cant cosplay (competing or not) because of that

Omg your point 5 that you want more competitions to be performance based: AMEN TO THAT! Personally i love competitions and crafting but my heart lays with performing and so i am too upset that there isnt as big of a stage for Act based competitioners compared to Craftskilled based. That could open up the competition world so much to people who are such amazing stunning performers but lack at some skill points. ❤

I entered into 2021 metrocon (tampa) cosplay contest as an original cosplay, which was a large furbolg bear creature. It had aluminum welded frame, fans, sound effects, a camera to see out the costume. and was all made from scratch. nothing was premade. I didnt get best in show, but i did get best technical achievement. I had a book too with all of the photos and written instructions on how i made it with all materials. which i think helped

I must disagree with the comissions being allowed just because its also cosplay. Depends who made it, they should be tied to the same experience restrictions cosplayers who make their cosplays are. In that case sure, but it has to be carefully monitored.

Thank you for talking about how cosplay performing should have a competition on its own! Cosplay performance is my passion, so it can be so frustrating in competitions where it feels like they only judge based on the cosplay :D I work as a cosplay teacher and I also tell my students they should only compete if they want to be on stage, want to show their cool cosplay and have fun, but certainly not if they want or expect to win :)

This actually made me consider competitions. I don't feel comfortable with competitions and stages in general, so I kinda just decided this wasn't for me, but making friends and talking about things we all care about sounds really fun. Honestly, I'm working on my first cosplay and I don't even know what I even intend to do with it :P

Thank you for this! I'm preparing to enter my first cosplay contest in a month and in trying to learn everything I can!

Hello PHILIPPINES! Everything is clout/pageant style based and good pr. I just wish my country is as specific/thorough with the costumes. Worse case is the rizz/preadator normie tactics.

Can you make a video on planning and building electronic housing for Batteries and switches of all sizes? I've been having issues with the proper size of weapons vs the battery packs and switches. Thanks!

Im participating in a cosplay contest this august so thank you! I haven't perfected it, this is only my 2nd contest ❤

Corgi! ✨ I could not resist sorry xD But no really, I've been thinking about joining a cosplay contest for a while, so this video was indeed helpful, thank you!

Svetlana you have no idea how excited I was to see this video today 🥹 I've been researching tips for contests for weeks now because I'm finally competing in my first competition after cosplaying for 9 years (and the competition is next weekend eek!) I'm so excited to compete and I can't wait to hear your tips as im commenting this before I watch haha. You are the BEST ❤

Im in the last straight of my current cosplay for next month, so this come in just in time. But all the things I could make I have done so, just working on the stage part. Which I am more nervous about.

If possible, I'd also recommend asking/taking advice from the judges if you have a chance to talk to them after the competition. You can learn a lot from their feedback!

Thanks for all the tips and behind the scenes info. I haven't entered a contest yet but I've thought about it. It's good to go into something with the right expectations.

I have participated once in a cosplay contest at Dokomi 2014 if not mistaken… my cos was good, but my performance totally crabby 🤪 3 minutes are incredibly long and the stage is very small - I was walking in circles only 😁 My cos was very heavy (~10kg), the prop had ~3kg - so no jumping or hopping possible 😂 Amazingly I have reached 3rd place, only because of the costume 😄 So, my advice: know what you want to perform and practice in your living room. Enjoy! ❤️

can you do a tutorial on a build books i can't find good ones on RU-vid

Portugal (now that you live here as well) has many performance and maker competitions. And this year we also had a first just cosplay kids contest (was adorable9.

I was hesitating to start making cosplay competition and you make this video about it, I see this as a sign to begin my competition journey ! 💪🏻

Hey - Do you guys ever come to North America (Canada) for conventions? You would have a Tonne of fun. ;) If you ever think about it - I recommend Anime North - have a great cosplay community and I think they would love your knowledge....

I cosplay Bi-han & Kuai Liang My main focus for attending cosplay is for kids take pictures (selfie) and have new friends that are doing cosplay

I guess Hollywood is coswork?

Love pushing myself for an epic challenging cosplay, but hate contests, as they are a "who you know from the judge table" contest in most places. I've been around the scene for +15 years and saw a lot of unfairness around it.

At October i'm going to my first cosplay contest! I'm a bit nervous but I'm super excited about it :) and for my first cosplay is dazai osamu from bungou stray dogs :D

I have have a question: how are you guys so awesome? You make this all seem like so fun.

In My country Cosplay is all about Business, Influence , i Saw Cosplay Judges let their Member that participating on the competition win despite other had more score point than them . and same team won 1st and second place straight 2 year . Its even impossible to win cosplay competition once let alone for 3 year straight .

The worst part of going to some competition here where I live, is that the most of the places just pay attention to the cosplays that you bought :/ I went to a competition with one cosplay handmade and the judges just started to say that it was not good enough or that I had to bought the cosplay instead of making it by hand :,,) And its so frustrating, not because of the price or something like that, but because they ignore the most part of my cosplay just because I didnt have money to buy one :,,))

As far as "special effects" are concerned, are there any other types of effects that aren't LED, smoke, or mechanical related? Maybe some special effects that you would consider to be mind blowing?

thank you for sharing that, I hope that in my country we would just have a crafting contest, it's really mixed up in here, and sometimes they just take sides with their friends even if that was unfair, so till further notice, I'm not participating ....

This is such a a good video. I've done a competition once and I loved the vibe and atmosphere behind the stage while we were waiting to go on. You get to see another side of the community and so far I really loved it. I am planning on making a new Geralt armor and particip again so this video came at a great time for me

Great tips!😊

I love making costumes but performing on stage just isn‘t my cup of tea… Which is weird since I‘m an actress 😂

Great Video! This is an excellent overview of what to expect when entering a competition. I especially liked the discussion of the comraderie during the event. I can remember taking breaks while waiting to be prejudged and just walking up and down the line chatting with other cosplayers, sharing compliments, and swapping construction tips and tricks. The only thing I'd add is that depending on how big the con is and how organized the staff are, competing can be an all day affair. Plan to show up early for prejudging and be prepared to be in line in costume for a long time. Handlers are very important if you have an elaborate costume or even just to make a food run.

You need to donate some more Christians , distributed by governments on a 10 year lease .💀💀💀💀💖🎅

And if you fail, it doesn't mean that your cosplay is bad. The fun is the most important.

I really just enjoy walking the show floor. I'm way too shy to go up on a stage, plus the winners and finalists are always wearing big armor sets with LED's and different effects.

I just competed in my first cosplay contest as a beginner at a local anime convention, and it was so much fun! I loved meeting other cosplayers, talking about our costumes, and getting the chance to hype each other up. I built a wig that could transform on stage from long to short with some magnets, and sliced it all off in my performance, and my costume and performance won me the best skit award in the contest! It was a great time, and I’ll be competing again (as an intermediate next time!)

I was considering doing a cosplay contest and this actually helped for when I eventually do

Kamui be honest with me i just turned 30 and new to cosplay am i too old to try and compete?

There was a skit contest in Anime North, Toronto for many years, where it was only for the performance that was judged, but due to lack of participation, they were to maybe stop to make it. Some of the best cosplay performances I have seen was there.

This is great timing, I'm currently working on my first ever cosplay that I want to compete with 😊 or that's at least a milestone on the way to competing

i'm competing in the league of legends LCS this year and using your lights book to help add LEDs to my centaur cosplay :3 wish me luck haha

I was thinking of performing at a cosplay contest at next Touhoufest, but I feel intimidated lol, but they look like so much fun!!

I agree! I love cosplay competitions! I've met so many amazing friends that way ❤

Friend of mine participated in a Starcraft cosplay comp many years ago, there were some truly incredible works of art up on the stage, but he won with a last-minute, cardboard cutout thing he put together the night before when he found out the event was on. It was pretty good though - he went as a Pylon. But I can't imagine the screen-perfect Kerrigan, with what must have been hours worth of makeup and prosthetics not to mention the creation time itself, was stoked with that result! So don't be afraid to think outside the - ahem - box!

My first win, I didn't go home (it was 200 miles away for a start 😅😅) but I did start walking to the loo. There are pictures of my face when I won and its obvious I didn't expect to win because I'd even forgotten there was a money prize 😂😂😂

In what kind of alternative world we are, that Svetlana didn't even mention her books!!!🤣🤣🤣

A quick question, so what if you are cosplaying a like, recreation of a character? Like, I’m currently making a DJ Music Man (security breach) but it’s more humanoid, like, I have 6 arms that work, but it’s mostly inspired by the character, not the character itself. Since the character is literally a giant spider, the clothes and hair and all of that stuff are my own idea. So how would that work in the case of a competition?

I competed 2 times until now first one was horrible because the sound was soo quiet you coulnd hear nothing that was in 2017? 2nd time i competed i got first place had the fun of my life performing because my performance was meant to be funny and the audience understood everything that made me so hyped on stage best day of my live that was in 2022 (anyone interrested i posted my performance here)

She’s so cute omg 😭😭

True. cosplaying is not making the Cosplay. it can be a part of it yess. but it dose not need to be. funy that i say because i am the kind of type taht wants to make EVERYTHING himself xD Also yess i wannt to do Cosplay contest forever. and i want the crowd just to make "WOOHOOO" that would be my win. i don't care it win 1st or second. but i want to Entertain everyone

I've participate only two time in a competition, the first one was with a Seregios armor from Monster Hunter (the golden one with tons of scales) , it was in my city in a gaming event, and i got nothing, not even in the first 3 or some "jury choice". It was so disappointing, i've spend like 300 hours crafting, and i loose against someone who bought her cosplay on Aliexpress... I was a nobody in a "cosplay family" The fact is, some competition are corrupt, the jury are friend with people participating (same association for exemple) and you can see how they're close before the competition, you had no chance to win something in this case. Even if you come with a real jetpack from the sky. Surprisely, my 2nd competition was against "master" cosplayer and i get 2nd place.

VERY HELPFUL FOR BEGGINERS LIKE US WHO KNOWS NOTHING ABOUT COSPLAY :)

Someone asked me why my seams of my ball gown were not finished on the inside. My answer was “it’s historically accurate!” Aint nobody got time to hand tack those seams nobody’s gonna see! Although it was created using techniques meant for theater, which would in time need adjusting but I just use the “historically accurate” card on my bodices and theater tricks for my skirts which include shaped waistbands to fake a train on a rectangle of fabric, bias taped skirt seams, and really deep hems. Also if I was gonna do performance contest, I would probably sing opera at the highest soprano notes I can sing.

The first time I did a competition, was my birthday last year, got 3rd place for my Albedo from Overlord, sadly it was one of them basic competitions where only 1st got a reward, but I was super happy to get 3rd place for my first one. I'm now panicking at this exact moment about do I apply for the rising star or masters competition next week at SunnyCon with my Alexstrasza!

First and only cosplay competition I went to, arrived late for the signup which was like 5 hours before the actual contest, and this is comming from someone who always gets to places hours before, Im never late. There was a train malfunction and got there literally 10 minutes late and got discualified even tho I tried explaining. Fun experience.. xD Oo also got banned from participating for 2 years due to "dropping out" on the day of the contest. True that its one of the biggest conventions in Spain, however horribly organized for years by two guys, and the prejudging was done in line before going out in a couple seconds. So not missing much honestly

What is when you make a cosplay of a redesign or a human version of a character is that allowed?

I was awarded at a small competition last sunday as moana for the beat tailoring (not the first prize but still). It was my first competition after years of hiatus and with a cosplay that took three years of work. The recognition was wonderful, but the best thing is that I made a lot of new friends and the compliments i recieved are priceless. A young girl told me that i was her inspiration to start cosplaying. What's best than this?! And also, the children faces when they asked for a pic with their favourite princess. Guys cosplay is for fun, not for winning.

I also enjoyed my two cosplay contests at fantasy Basel and I met some really cool people there! I didn't win anything but I'm proud my performance and crafting has aproved a lot :). About the performamce/crafting point. I see it a bit more sceptical. If the two categories were seperated that would be the best case in my opinion bc. If you crafted your costume the time you spent on the training for a performance is not comparable with the time you spend on crafting. Surely both has it 's difficulty and I love good performances but just to be fair I would rather seperate the two categories instead of a 50% 50% rating.

Also a very important note when it comes to some judges. Some judges will give you extra attention if you cosplay from something they like...or if they know you. This is sadly very common on walk on competitions.

At October I will go to my first performance and craftmanship contest and I am a bit nervous. This video is a great help. Thank you :)

One very important tip I can give you: ALWAYS ask the judges after a contest what you can improve on your cosplay. The judges give the best and most direct pointers to the faults found in the cospaly. this will help you become better

Momocon has a closet costume contest (it's called something different now) that's 60% or less handmade and it's like the craftsman but just for people who made less

In Sweden some convention have a "walk on" for those who just want to show of their costumes. Then you can buy your cosplay but there is also no prizes to win more then the audiance love. Then we also have sketch-competitions who also allows bought costumes and only judges the performance on stage.

I wonder why no one else has tackled this subject before! All of your points are valid 👏 ✨️ 👌 WOW

I wonder if you have suggestion for older cosplayer. It's rare to see people older than 35 going on stage. Thank you!

CORGI SQUAD 🐕

corgi

Great video! I recently got accepted into the Fan Expo Dallas cosplay contest, and im super excited for it! I am cosplaying the Midwestern Power Armor from Fallout tactics.

Corgi Squad!

Where I have attended cons the cosplay contests were very infamous for being nepotistic. If you weren't a friend of a judge you had immediate disadvantage on any contest you entered, and it immediatley killed any interest I had in entering more. And now with the competition being as good as it is, there's no shot of winning even a beginner award unless you are a master sculptor and able to sew multiple intricate garments. :/

I've been cosplaying well over a decade but I've never entered a costume competition due to my crippling stage fright :') I'm so scared of making a fool of myself in front of thousands of people (especially if it's caught on tape then published online)...

Oh before you moved to.

Team Corgi!

Great info!

corgi corgi c o r g i

Corgi! 🐶🐶

Really helpful video as I'm planning my first larger cosplay project and I would really like to try competing in it !

corgie