Cosplay, the passion beyond the costume.

I admit that until very recently, this world did not call my attention, but recently I met someone in the middle, who told me a little about his passion, which aroused my curiosity about this subject was foreign to me then.

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Let's start by defining it, etymologically Cosplay comes from English: costume (disguise) and play (game). It involves characterizing an animated character, manga, comics, book, series, movie or video game, among others. It arises in the 70s in the Japanese Comic Market, which are held in Odaiba (Tokyo) places to buy / sell Dôjinshi (Japanese comics).

All this goes much further than just wearing a costume. There are many skills that the Cosplayer must develop, since in most cases it is also a Cosmaker (cos: of costume, maker). Starting by being very creative to design the costume, which must meet the aesthetic aspects that give the appearance of the character they want to represent, the comfort that allows you to move and carry it during the hours that delay the events in which they participate and the durability that gives meaning to all the money and time invested in the suit. The making of the suit involves days and even months of work.

Another skill to develop is the instinct of a good buyer, able to negotiate and get quality raw material, makeup and accessories at a price that suits the budget that is handled. In addition they must become expert seamstresses, one of the most important skills, it is not something that is perfected overnight.

Know which is the best thread, what kind of fabric to select, because a wrong row can spoil the suit. Imagine nothing more than in a movement a seam, a mistake. And although they can help with professionals in this trade, the most fanatical prefer to make all their clothing from scratch, in addition to making their costumes unique pieces, despite being obviously influenced and even look as close as possible to the character's image to imitate.

Once the arduous process of creating the disguise has been completed, now comes the defining moment, the power to wear it, but as I said before, it is not as simple as we could think, because they represent a character, with a personality of their own, with a series of characteristics, that the cosplayer must be able to transmit to those who observe it and even evaluate in contests, where they judge: performance or performance, costume, accessories, makeup, creativity, originality, commitment and charisma.

So in summary we speak of someone who plays the role of designer / buyer / seamstress / make-up artist / actor / model who most of the time does not generate income from this activity, to which we can define it as a hobby, a lifestyle and even an art.

Among its variants are: the simulation of anthropomorphic figures, the anthropomorphic adaptation of zoomorphic characters, the cross-dressing, which is the representation of opposite gender roles and erotic character. Another terminology closely related to the Cosplay is the Otaku, which I will soon discuss in a forthcoming publication.

My bigotry for Game of Thrones is big, I'm a bit hopeless to wait another year for the next season. So I could not waste the opportunity to take a picture in the set set with the theme of GOT.