Cosplay
Cosplay ( Japanese コ ス プ レ , kosupure ) is a fan practice shaped in Japan , which came to the USA and Europe in the 1990s with the manga and anime boom. In cosplay, the participant represents a character from a manga, anime, film , video game or other medium as faithfully as possible through a costume and behavior.
Origin of name
The term cosplay , the Japanese portmanteau word from the English terms costume and play (literally translated "costume game"), was coined by Nobuyuki Takahashi , the founder of the Japanese publisher Studio Hard . Takahashi first used his new creation in a June 1983 article for My Anime magazine .
function
In cosplay, the participant represents a character , for example a superhero or a villain , through costume, mask , accessories and behavior as closely as possible to the original. The character can be chosen from a manga, an anime, a comic, a video game, a feature film, from a TV series or novel. Free interpretations, the mixing of characters and representations of the opposite sex are also possible in this form of role play .
Cosplay is mainly used for personal enjoyment and for competitions at conventions . One possible source of income is the sale of self-made costumes and all kinds of accessories as well as modeling or renting for events. Only a small number of cosplayers pursue the hobby in order to earn money. Members of Japanese visual kei bands are often mimicked in the J-Rock fan scene . In general, the connection to Japan is deeply rooted among cosplayers. In addition to visual kei, there are many fans of Lolita fashion .
In some cases, variants of the cosplay can also be found in the BDSM scene.
Cosplay in Japan
Some cosplayers have become so popular in Japan that so-called "Idol Cards" (collectible photo cards) are available from them. Many cosplayers who are also active on the Internet display their costumes on specially designed websites.
The largest cosplay event is the World Cosplay Summit , organized annually in Nagoya by the TV station TV Aichi , a competition for cosplayers with an international field of participants. Cosplay restaurants have been growing in Japan since around the year 2000 . In establishments for male customers ( Maid Café ), the waitresses are disguised as maids, nurses or the like. In establishments for a female target audience ( butler café or host club ) the waiters wear butler costumes.
In Japan, the term “cosplay” can also be used as a synonym for erotic role-playing games or for brothels that offer erotic role-playing games.
Western cosplay events
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In Germany, in addition to fan meetings and anime and manga conventions , cosplay also takes place at other conventions, such as Gamescom , which, in addition to panels and exhibitions, usually also host a cosplay competition. GamesCom even has its own CosplayVillage. Cosplay competitions from the anime / manga scene at Western events are reminiscent of variety shows . The cosplayers can perform a short piece : some sing the theme song of the corresponding television series , for example , while others quote a monologue that matches the character . Groups mostly perform a sketch or show fight. Essentially, more emphasis is placed on the performance here than on the costume. In recent years, there has been an increasing tendency for the performance to be supported by playing music and performing choreography .
Depending on the event, the jury of a cosplay competition usually consists of guests of honor, magazine editors, cosplayers and volunteer participants. Assessments are usually made in the categories “Similarity of the figure to the original”, “Design / manufacture of the costume”, “Presentation of the character”, “Audience reaction” and “Personal impression”. A “cosplay catwalk” is the name of a competition in which the cosplayers do not perform, but just walk across the stage.
Cosplay can also find social recognition through social engagement .
Germany
The German Cosplay Championship has been taking place in Germany since 2007 . Other big events related to cosplay are the DoKomi in Düsseldorf, the Connichi in Kassel and the German Comic Con in Dortmund, Berlin and Frankfurt and Comic Con Germany in Stuttgart, based on the model of the big Comic Con International (which takes place in San Diego) . Germany has been involved in the World Cosplay Summit , the unofficial world championships in cosplay , since 2003 .
Austria
The AniNite, Nippon Nation and Vienna Comic-Con conventions are important events for cosplay in Austria. In 2018, the Austrian representative took first place at the EuroCosplay Final in London. In 2019 Austria sent its own team to the World Cosplay Summit for the first time.
Switzerland
The cosplay scene in Switzerland is strongly separated by the language regions. Although there is an exchange between the language regions, living out the hobby differs e.g. Partly strong. So far, apart from two German-Swiss teams, only French-speaking cosplayers have competed in international competitions.
Important cosplay events in Switzerland are Fantasy Basel for German-speaking Switzerland, Polymanga for French-speaking Switzerland and Japan Matsuri for Ticino. The first convention in Switzerland was the JapAniManga-Night, which was held for the first time in 2001 and the last time in 2018.
Switzerland has been participating in the World Cosplay Summit with its own team since 2016.
Cinematic reception
So far, cosplayers have received less treatment in feature films. The films Galaxy Quest or Fanboys do feature sci-fi cosplayers, but they are not the focus of the plot. There are also documentaries such as Trek Nation , which illuminate the cosplayers' devotion to creating their costumes and even learning a fictional language.
Erotic films that have cosplay as their subject are u. a. the Japanese production Cosplay by Oriental Dream Pictures from 2006 with the actors Eriko Akiyoshi and Yuka Sakagami as well as Cosplay Maniacs from the series Magic Banana (Vol. 14).
In October 2012, the US production studio Wicked Pictures hosted a press meeting to announce the start of a new series entitled Wicked Pictures: Cosplay . The series is directed by Barrett Blade , who has extensive experience as a performer in pornographic films. In March 2013 the first film Wicked Cosplay: Show No Mercy u. a. with US actresses Alektra Blue , Alexis Monroe , Anikka Albrite and Molly Bennett.
In 2013, director Tanya Tate, known for her cosplay performances at various comic fairs, released the film Cosplay Queens & Tied up Teens, a lesbian film. The series Big Tits in Uniform, which has been filmed since 2010, and the film series Doctor Adventures by the Brazzers label also deal with cosplay. In the meantime, a whole series of American porn parodies of well-known mainstream films can be assigned to the cosplay genre based on the acting and costumes of the actors. These include, for example, Avengers XXX - A Porn Parody and Spider-Man XXX: A Porn Parody .
In March 2015 the film Comic Book Freaks and Cosplay Geeks by Burning Angel Entertainment, directed by Joanna Angel , was released. In August 2016, the second part was released with Cosplay Geeks # 2 . In 2017, the film Cosplay Cuties by Jayrock Productions studio was released, starring Bella Rose , Lily Adams, Evelin Stone and Jade Kush. In 2018 Studio Millennial released the POV film Cum and Cosplay, starring superstars Carter Cruise , Penny Pax , Holly Hendrix and Brett Rossi . Also in 2018 were the films Freaks N Geeks Cosplay by Taboo Dream Studios (with Anissa Kate , Abella Anderson , Melody Petite, Sabrina Taylor , among others ), Crazy For Cosplay by the Digital Playground studio , and others. a. with Whitney Wright, Scarlett Sage, Khloe Capri, Sarah Banks and Jessica Rex as well as the film Adventures in Cosplay by the studio Porn Pros with the actresses Adriana Chechik , Ariana Marie, Piper Perri and Raylin Ann.
In 2019 the JayRock Productions studio released the films The Cosplay Experience with the actresses Kenzie Reeves , August Ames , Jennifer White and Jill Kassidy and The Cosplay Experience 2 . In the second part Adriana Chechik can be seen as Ms 4th of July , Gina Valentina as Rainbow Nymph, Dillion Harper as Mizore Shirayuki , a manga character from the anime series Rosario + Vampire and Jade Kush as Maki Nishikino , a character from the anime Love Live! School Idol Project and from the manga Love Live! School Idol Project . Also in 2019 the film Dirty Cosplay by director Jakodema was released on the label #LetsDoeIt. This film contains only two scenes of approx. 30 minutes each with the actors Kenna James and Vicki Chase (a lesbian scene) and Natalia Starr . In 2019 the Digital Playground studio released a second part "Dirty Cosplay" 2 with the Chinese actress Jade Kush and the American Kalina Ryu . This was followed in 2020 by "Dirty Cosplay" 3 with Abigail Mac , Britney Amber and Honey Gold .
literature
- Gert Anhalt : girls, manga, masked ball. Kosupuree - youth in disguise fever. In: Time for Japan. Reports from an unknown country. Bucher, Munich 2005, pp. 40–43, ISBN 3-7658-1482-2 .
- Sandra Grimme, Dinah Keshishian, Miriam Loetz (eds.): Cosplay. Under the spell of fantasy. Werkbank030, Berlin 2014, ISBN 978-3-942860-72-7 (international illustrated book).
- Laura Byell, Karishma Schumacher: The German cosplay scene . In: Creative Crowds - Perspectives on fan research in German-speaking countries . Büchner-Verlag, Darmstadt 2014, pp. 345–363, ISBN 978-3-941310-42-1 .
- Theresa Winge: Costuming the Imagination: Origins of Anime and Manga Cosplay . In: Mechademia . No. 1 . University of Minnesota Press, 2006, pp. 65-76 , doi : 10.1353 / mec.0.0084 (English).
- Fritjof Eckhardt: What is Cosplay? , ISBN 978-3-7412-9554-6 .
Web links
- Essay on Cosplay in the Open Access Digital Initiative of the University of Tokyo (English)
- Entry in the dictionary of film terms
- Cosfans , German cosplay web magazine.
Individual evidence
- ↑ akibanana.com ( Memento from January 10, 2010 in the Internet Archive )
- ↑ BDSM is not all about sex: There's more than 50 shades. In: The Tab. 2017, accessed on May 18, 2017 .
- ↑ Heroes for Hearts e. V .: Cosplayers get involved with seriously ill children , awarded by startsocial .