A note on cosplay....
Many of us probably know that cosplay is high up there in my geeky addictions. I get a positive thrill from dressing up and running around 'on stage'. Now I am still quite new in my cosplay and there are so many people that have helped me in my, so far!, short experience with it. I'm not entirely sure it would be possible to name them all.
That is possibly the best part about cosplay - the sheer community factor of it. I've know complete strangers to be life-savers, giving out spirit gum, coming to aid unasked with heavy or difficult props - even bodily supporting each other to help get into that last great pose for that truly amazing special photo. I will, personally, never forget how embarrassed I was when I asked people to make this photo come true. And how thrilled I was when they agreed!
The only thing that frustrates me about cosplayers - and I accept that I'm going to make some people angry when I say this - are the ones who take it to such a level that they feel the need to be condescending or insulting to others. Part of me takes this view because, as someone who studied backstage theatre, I amazed at the snideness people can have regarding a hobby. I'm all for taking this hobby seriously - remember I'm the woman who won't get out of the Oracle wheelchair except make it easier on the people who actually need them. As a side note - it is really funny to watch people do a spit take when I do have to stand up...
I just don't get the contempt I see from certain players. I don't get the anger when I see cosplayers mocking those who take a different approach on a character, be it altering color scheme, time period, gender or something else. I don't understand because how many times have the comic creaters themselves explored what the characters would be like if X, Y, or Z conditions were changed? It seems far more in the spirit of the comics and, in particular cases, the characters themselves to explore different avenues.
In most cases though, I can write those off. I find my temper flaring when certain attacks are used as the words chosen are frequently quite insulting in regard to weight, gender, and other factors - attacks that seem totally out of character for the icons they want to embody. My temper usually grows hot regarding those factors though and I try to remind myself of the words spoken by a dear friend of mine, small minds wearing the outfits of great ones.
What I am really fabblergasted by is the hostility I have seen on a handful of occasions when one cosplayer turns to another and asks how they accomplished a particular effect.
This simply boggles me. To be clear, I realize that we owe each other nothing, there is no contract between us all. Yet the few individuals I have seen doing this have been rather rude about it. I could understand a polite "sorry man, I worked really hard on this and I just don't want to give out how I did it". Not a snide "figure it out yourself man". And, while others may have had a different experience, I have never experienced or witnessed a polite denial. Just the two extremes of people being incredibly willing to help and a handful of people who seem to feel their costumes elavate them over others.
The vast majority of cosplayers I have met are not profressional costumers. I understand and support guarding a trade secret and count myself fortunate that my best friend is a professional costumer. I have drawn on her knowledge many times and likely will continue to do so in the future.
While others disagree with me, and they are more than free to do so, I draw a line between professional costuming and cosplaying. I also draw a line between what cosplays I wear for fun and what costumes I wear when I'm being paid for the appearance - I will wear a costume out and about for fun and play that I wouldn't consider wearing for a paying event unless the people I was working with knew ahead of time the quality/style of the costume.
Now, for me, a costumer is someone who makes their living making and selling costumes and a cosplayer is anyone who assembles their costumes as a hobby. This is a similar difference to the one I saw in historical reenacting. One may make their own garb - the favored term, at least at the time and location when I was doing it - and may make garb for friends but that didn't make one a sulter. That title was reserved for those who set up shop selling their wares.
Now... All that said... There are people I have run into at events who set up booths and sell merchandise for a living that I do not regard as professionals, either because of the quality of the merchandise they sell or because of their customer service or other factors entirely. There are also the amateur prop makers and costumers who are amateur solely because they have no wish to be professional but whose work is positively-breath taking.
Yet while the lines can blur, I do still see there as being a difference and regard costumer as a profession, not a hobby. I do not draw this difference to insult those who are not making a living off their efforts - many, many, many people in historical reenacting, ren fairs, and cosplay could make their creations professionally if they wanted to. I draw this line to give respect to those who do - because it is a hell of a lot harder to make a stock of ball gowns, corsets, and costumes in various materials and sizes and figure what will sell and what won't than it is to create one every now and again for a friend who makes their tastes clearly known. Costumers attached to a theatre don't have it any easier - theatre hours are hell for everyone and theatre companies everywhere are making intense budget cuts. The theatre costumer doesn't have the option of charging more to make a better creation, they have to create amazing out of nothing.
I draw this line to pay respect to a profession that, in my humble opinion, is frequently overlooked and undervalued. So, for me anyway, remember... love your fellow cosplayer. Love to your fellow geeks.
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