Assignment 1 - Topic
By Karen Wang
12 April 2013
An Introduction to Cosplay
Cosplaying is the practice of dressing up as one’s favorite anime or cartoon character. Cosplay, or “costume role-play”, is centered around community and social interaction. In addition, the demand for cosplay wigs, costumes, and accessories has created a niche online market between Asia and North America. As a result, the Internet has played an important role in shaping cosplay culture, and will continue to be a major influence in years to come.
Cosplay culture is more complex than just dressing up as anime characters. Avid cosplayers will attend anime conventions, take pictures with fans, and participate in cosplay masquerades (see picture).
12 April 2013
An Introduction to Cosplay
Cosplaying is the practice of dressing up as one’s favorite anime or cartoon character. Cosplay, or “costume role-play”, is centered around community and social interaction. In addition, the demand for cosplay wigs, costumes, and accessories has created a niche online market between Asia and North America. As a result, the Internet has played an important role in shaping cosplay culture, and will continue to be a major influence in years to come.
Cosplay culture is more complex than just dressing up as anime characters. Avid cosplayers will attend anime conventions, take pictures with fans, and participate in cosplay masquerades (see picture).
Masquerades are cosplay competitions where participants perform a short, typically humorous skit, and are judged based on their costume and performance quality. They are an opportunity for cosplayers to show off their work and receive positive, supportive feedback from the audience through applause and cheers.
Most importantly, cosplayers will share their ideas and creations with other people. In the past, this was achieved in Japan through print media, with cosplay magazines such as Cosmode that would compile tutorials and cosplay photographs from anime conventions and publish them in periodical form. In recent years, this has transitioned to individuals posting on online cosplay forums and social media sites. Magazines like Cosmode are also transitioning online by offering their issues in digital form.
The History of Cosplay
In her article, Costuming the Imagination, Theresa Winge traces the origins of cosplay back to the rise of participatory fan culture in North America and Japan. In the 1960s, many US comic convention goers dressed up as popular science fiction and action heroes. In 1984, Nov Takahashi, the founder and writer for anime publisher Studio Hard, visited World-Con in Los Angeles where he was impressed by the many character costumes. He wrote about his experiences at the comic convention and encouraged Japanese anime fans to make their own costumes, coining the new term “cosplay”.
The popularity of anime and manga in Japan and the growing demand for anime imports in the US led to the rise of anime conventions. Japan and US anime conventions share similar aspects including panels, famous guests, video rooms, and of course, cosplay. Today, there are more than 60 anime conventions held annually throughout the US.
Over the past 20 years, convention attendance and cosplay culture has grown alongside mainstream usage of the Internet. In the 1990s, anime conventions were planned and publicized through local, already-established anime clubs. However, the growth of email usage and social networks allowed convention organizers to plan, organize, and advertise much more easily. Today, anime convention registration is mainly conducted online through convention websites, such as San Jose’s FanimeCon. Convention organizers turn to sites like Facebook and Twitter to advertise and broadcast announcements about attractions such as guest speakers and performances. FanimeCon has grown from 200 attendees in 1994 to over 20,000 in 2012. As conventions grow in size, so has interest in cosplaying.
The Internet Offers More Ways for Cosplayers to Interact Online
Today, the Internet plays a significant role in a cosplayer’s life, from social media platforms to online vendors. Cosplay is a social activity that is made fun by sharing the experience with other fans. Specialty sites such as World Cosplay and Cure Cosplay are used by thousands of users worldwide, while US cosplayers employ social networks such as Facebook that allow people with similar interests to connect through the Groups function. On these sites, people can easily share ideas through posting pictures and links, and plan events and gatherings at anime conventions with other cosplayers all over the country.
In addition, the Internet continues to operate as a powerful tool to introduce people to the anime and manga genres. Online anime-streaming websites such as Crunchyroll and Hulu provide free, popular anime shows with English subtitles for US users. Manga-hosting websites such as Mangareader are another way by which people can discover and engage themselves in the culture, and subsequently increases participation in anime conventions and cosplay culture.
Novice cosplayers use sites such as Instructables and Youtube to find tutorials and inspiration for their next project. There are tutorials on how to make 7-foot-long swords, to lace petticoats. Cosplayers are constantly trying to work out the logistical challenges of costume-making, from creating gravity-defying spiked wigs to giant robot suits. The challenges of cosplay are as broad as the imagination, and the Internet is a vast pool of information that cosplayers of any level draw upon to improve their craft.
Finally, since some components of cosplay, such as wigs and contact lenses, cannot be easily bought or made by individuals themselves, they need to turn to online stores that sell these items en-masse on sites like eBay, Amazon, and Taobao (a major online shopping website in China). Many of the big suppliers are based in China, Hong Kong, or Japan, so the Internet allows sellers and buyers to trade on a global scale. Simultaneously, individual cosplayers can buy otherwise inaccessible or hard-to-find cosplay gear online. Many find that the pitfalls of buying online are outweighed by the attractive pricing and availability of products in these online stores.
What Could the Future Bring for Online Cosplay Consumption?
The Internet will continue to provide social media tools for cosplayers to connect online. For example, as Facebook begins releasing their new GraphSearch tool, cosplayers can look for other people living in their city who are interested in cosplay or a specific anime title, and form groups to attend anime conventions with. As online business and vendor-consumer interaction becomes more sophisticated, more and more fans will buy their cosplays and supplies online. In 10 years, consumers will be able to project holographic representations of products out of their computer screen and interact with them before purchasing. This will allow customers to try cosplays and props on for size before buying them. In 3 or 4 years, online vendors will eBay and Taobao might transition to “safer” online currency such as BitCoins to eliminate the potential for online scams. And traditional print cosplay magazines will give way towards digital animated magazines that feature cosplay videos as well as “moving photographs” such as those in Harry Potter novels. Increasingly, the Internet will incorporate online connectivity, business, and idea-sharing into the cosplay culture.
References:
http://muse.jhu.edu/journals/mechademia/v001/1.winge.htm
http://www.cosmodeonline.com/
http://www.fanime.com/
The History of Cosplay
In her article, Costuming the Imagination, Theresa Winge traces the origins of cosplay back to the rise of participatory fan culture in North America and Japan. In the 1960s, many US comic convention goers dressed up as popular science fiction and action heroes. In 1984, Nov Takahashi, the founder and writer for anime publisher Studio Hard, visited World-Con in Los Angeles where he was impressed by the many character costumes. He wrote about his experiences at the comic convention and encouraged Japanese anime fans to make their own costumes, coining the new term “cosplay”.
The popularity of anime and manga in Japan and the growing demand for anime imports in the US led to the rise of anime conventions. Japan and US anime conventions share similar aspects including panels, famous guests, video rooms, and of course, cosplay. Today, there are more than 60 anime conventions held annually throughout the US.
Over the past 20 years, convention attendance and cosplay culture has grown alongside mainstream usage of the Internet. In the 1990s, anime conventions were planned and publicized through local, already-established anime clubs. However, the growth of email usage and social networks allowed convention organizers to plan, organize, and advertise much more easily. Today, anime convention registration is mainly conducted online through convention websites, such as San Jose’s FanimeCon. Convention organizers turn to sites like Facebook and Twitter to advertise and broadcast announcements about attractions such as guest speakers and performances. FanimeCon has grown from 200 attendees in 1994 to over 20,000 in 2012. As conventions grow in size, so has interest in cosplaying.
The Internet Offers More Ways for Cosplayers to Interact Online
Today, the Internet plays a significant role in a cosplayer’s life, from social media platforms to online vendors. Cosplay is a social activity that is made fun by sharing the experience with other fans. Specialty sites such as World Cosplay and Cure Cosplay are used by thousands of users worldwide, while US cosplayers employ social networks such as Facebook that allow people with similar interests to connect through the Groups function. On these sites, people can easily share ideas through posting pictures and links, and plan events and gatherings at anime conventions with other cosplayers all over the country.
In addition, the Internet continues to operate as a powerful tool to introduce people to the anime and manga genres. Online anime-streaming websites such as Crunchyroll and Hulu provide free, popular anime shows with English subtitles for US users. Manga-hosting websites such as Mangareader are another way by which people can discover and engage themselves in the culture, and subsequently increases participation in anime conventions and cosplay culture.
Novice cosplayers use sites such as Instructables and Youtube to find tutorials and inspiration for their next project. There are tutorials on how to make 7-foot-long swords, to lace petticoats. Cosplayers are constantly trying to work out the logistical challenges of costume-making, from creating gravity-defying spiked wigs to giant robot suits. The challenges of cosplay are as broad as the imagination, and the Internet is a vast pool of information that cosplayers of any level draw upon to improve their craft.
Finally, since some components of cosplay, such as wigs and contact lenses, cannot be easily bought or made by individuals themselves, they need to turn to online stores that sell these items en-masse on sites like eBay, Amazon, and Taobao (a major online shopping website in China). Many of the big suppliers are based in China, Hong Kong, or Japan, so the Internet allows sellers and buyers to trade on a global scale. Simultaneously, individual cosplayers can buy otherwise inaccessible or hard-to-find cosplay gear online. Many find that the pitfalls of buying online are outweighed by the attractive pricing and availability of products in these online stores.
What Could the Future Bring for Online Cosplay Consumption?
The Internet will continue to provide social media tools for cosplayers to connect online. For example, as Facebook begins releasing their new GraphSearch tool, cosplayers can look for other people living in their city who are interested in cosplay or a specific anime title, and form groups to attend anime conventions with. As online business and vendor-consumer interaction becomes more sophisticated, more and more fans will buy their cosplays and supplies online. In 10 years, consumers will be able to project holographic representations of products out of their computer screen and interact with them before purchasing. This will allow customers to try cosplays and props on for size before buying them. In 3 or 4 years, online vendors will eBay and Taobao might transition to “safer” online currency such as BitCoins to eliminate the potential for online scams. And traditional print cosplay magazines will give way towards digital animated magazines that feature cosplay videos as well as “moving photographs” such as those in Harry Potter novels. Increasingly, the Internet will incorporate online connectivity, business, and idea-sharing into the cosplay culture.
References:
http://muse.jhu.edu/journals/mechademia/v001/1.winge.htm
http://www.cosmodeonline.com/
http://www.fanime.com/