Category: Cosplayer Interviews

Videogame Cosplay Interview: Julie Beliveau as Lightning from Final Fantasy 13

Lunar Angel

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In our continuing videogame cosplay series, we bring to you Julie Beliveau as Lightning from Final Fantasy XIII. This 22 year old beauty has lived in Florida nearly all of her life and is a retail associate and attends the Academy of Art University, hoping to achieve her bachelors degree in computer animation. She has been gaming since the Mario bros came on the scene, back in the days of 2-D gaming. She loves RPGS for their rich worlds and characters. She is also known to play MMORPGs as well as the occasional first person shooter. She started getting into costuming when Final Fantasy X came around. Yuna’s costume was what inspired her, before then she loved a lot of character designs, her pseudo kimono sent her right over the edge. She loves cosplay but has friends both in and outside of this world and it has not hindered her social life in any way. Julie was recognized by one of Japan’s top cosplay magazines, Cosmode, this is a rare honor for an American. This makes interviewing Julie Beliveau even more special.

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1. As a female cosplayer, why did you take an interest in this character and how close does the character resemble your personality?

“Lightning attracted me from the very moment she hit the media. She’s strong, athletic and had a very interesting design. Her outfit is very clean cut and not extremely futuristic. I’m currently playing through the game, so I’ve had a chance to meet her. We’re both stubborn, strong willed, and mature beyond our age. I can really connect with her.”

2. What initially drew you to play the game?

“I’ve always been a loyal fan of the Final Fantasy series. Final Fantasy XIII is much different though from its predecessors. Its set in a unique semi-futuristic world known as Cocoon, placed above a world with harsh terrain that’s crawling with nothing but monsters known as Gran Pulse. One of Square-Enix‘s tag lines for the game in the beginning was, “She was sent to destroy the world.” it cued my interest because Lightning didn’t appear to be a destroyer of any world.”

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3. Did the character’s appearance affect your opinion of the game?

“Oh yes, every thing about her appearance was really attracting, even with her light pink hair. She really brought something new to the Final Fantasy table in regards to main characters. I find her to be a refreshing change to the series. She is all about kicking ass, and she doesn’t care to take names. She doesn’t battle in bikinis or scantily clad outfits, she’s a tough girl.”

4. Would you have played the game if this character was played by a male equivalent?

“Most likely, I’ve always been a loyal fan of the Final Fantasy series.”

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5. Is she your favorite video game babe? If so why, if not who is?

“Lightning is now my #1 favorite. My past #1 was KOS-MOS from the Xenosaga series. I really like the stronger female characters, because I can relate more to them. I’m not a damsel in distress type of girl after all. (laughs)”

6. What drove you to put in the work to make this character’s outfit and how did you go about making it?

“I had taken a year off from cosplaying after I moved in with my boyfriend, Quen. I wanted to get back into cosplaying as well as con-going and I wanted to make a re-entrance with something really awesome and very detailed. My fellow cosplayers pushed me to work on Lightning, and so I did. It took me three long months of work to make sure I had every detail in place. Afterwards I spent an additional two weeks updating the costume to be more accurate. I made the costume with materials that I thought closely resembled what was used in her outfit. It also included a lot of hardware work, of which I had never done before. As well as some minor leather working. The new shoulder armor that I made (Which I’m really proud of) actually has battery operated electroluminescent yellow wire in it to make it glow. I spent a lot of time studying the costume, down to every pocket, zipper and belt, and in the end I’m extremely satisfied with how it turned out. It just goes to show you that the more time and effort you put into your work the more it shows.”

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7. What do you personally feel when you are portraying the character and why do you choose to cosplay her?

“In any cosplay, I still feel like myself. Except for when I’m posing for photos. I put my mind into what I like to call ‘Lightning’ mode. In this mode I’m capable of mustering up a serious or fierce facial expression like the character. It really works well for the photos. I try to think about being in her shoes and doing what she does. I chose her over the other characters because of some of our similarities. Not only that, I really loved her weapon, a transforming gunblade.”

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For the rest of this interview, follow thisLINK, which will take you to the full interview over at Examiner.com.  Be sure to leave a comment.

Cosplayer Interview with Andrew Voraboud

Sherry

Ichigo Kurosaki Final Getsuga Tenshou Cosplay

Andrew Voraboud – winner of the November cosplay contest, accepted our interview here. He has been sponsored with the Fullmetal Alchemist Edward Elric Cosplay Costume Costume. While coming back from the holiday, he will share us some cosplay photos with this costume. Thanks, Andrew :P!

Q1. Please tell us something about yourself.

Well I am 18 years old now getting old OTL and have been cosplaying for more than 1 year now. I am a person who likes meeting new people at conventions and there is a competitive side of me but I still love having fun with friends and family 😀

Q2. When did you begin to do cosplay? You like it or got into it by some other reasons?

I had my year 11 social formal in 2010 and I needed a costume for it so I bought my first costume from the internet for my social formal. And I didn’t want my costume to go to a waste so I wore it to different conventions and really enjoyed it and that’s how I started cosplaying.

Q3. What’s your favorite cosplay and why?

My favorite cosplay has to be Nicholas D. Wolfwood from the Trigun series because is he a awesome character that carries around a giant cross gun with him and I really loved old school animes 😀

Nicholas D. Wolfwood

Q4. Have you ever met some difficulties in cosplay? And how did you solve them?

Yes! I have much time. But I always like a challenge when creating my costume and props. I usually ask friends/family or look for tutorial to solve the problems and “ALOT” of research.

Q5. I find you have so many stunning pictures displayed in the gallery. So, are you often photographed? Is there any suggestion for people? How can they look great while facing the lens?

I usually get photographed at the conventions I attend too. But it is also a good tip that you should research on locations suitable for your character and the poses that the character does.

Q6. Is there any suggestion for which convention cosplay beginners can go?

If you live in Australia the best conventions for the beginners to attend are Animania, Supanova and Smash in Sydney ^_^

Q7. We do think your cosplay photo you sent to us in the application form seems ideal. So, how could you achieve this?

Sharing it others.

Ichigo Kurosaki Cosplay

Q8. Any new plan you can’t wait to do? Or which conventions do you plan to go recently?

2012 I have my childhood anime characters I have been waiting to cosplay. Some characters are from Dragonball, One Piece and Young Justice.

Q9. Are your costumes made by yourself or bought?

Most of costumes are usually made by myself. But only a few costumes are bought for a photoshoots.

Q10. What are the good things of cosplay? And also, what are the bad things?

One of the best things about cosplaying is that you meet new people at different conventions and there are also so many good cosplayers at each convention. A bad thing about cosplaying is that some people can be very judgmental on your costume about detailing and how they look the point is to have fun cosplaying.

Q11: What do your family members think of your cosplay? Do they also like it and support you?

My family approves with cosplaying but education comes first before cosplaying. And my uncle supports me help and teaching making props and also my photographer.

Cosplayer Interview with Onpaperwings

Sherry

Valkyria Chronicles Selvaria Bles cosplay, done by Onpaperwings, was found by us before. It’s a stunning performance, certainly :). What more delights us is this cosplay talent accepts our interview here. Before starting the interview, you are strongly recommended to pay a visit to her gallery. I most like her Selvaria Bles cosplay. But except this one, many others also seem breathtaking. Don’t forget to take a look. Now, focus on the interview.

Q. Please introduce yourself first.

Hi, I’m Crystal Graziano from California. I grew up playing video games, which led to my interests in anime and comics. I first really discovered cosplaying at San Diego Comic Con, and I’ve been hooked ever since!

Q. What does cosplay mean to you?

For me, cosplay is a way to show my enthusiasm for a character or series, connect with other fans, and be creative all at once! I’ve really enjoyed making friends in this hobby who have the same interests; it’s definitely been the most rewarding aspect! On top of that, there is something very rewarding about wearing something I’ve made myself.

Q. What and when was your first cosplay?

I first cosplayed in 2005 as Aeris from FF7. It was just a “closet cosplay” put together from things that vaguely looked like her outfit, but I still had a fantastic time! I got hooked and eventually started to try to make costumes that actually look good, haha.

Q. What is your most memorable cosplay experience?

In 2010, Hideo Kojima selected me to fly to Tokyo Game Show to participate in a Konami cosplay contest there. It was a once in a lifetime experience! Not only did I get to meet with the creators of one of my favorite game series, I got to explore a foreign country and make friends with Japanese cosplayers. It’s hard to beat that!

Q. What’s your favorite photo shoot?

Definitely my Laughing Octopus photoshoot with Eric Ng of www.bigwhitebazooka.com. It was a last minute thing, so we did it in his hotel room. I was posing on top of a dresser, in the shower, and all kinds of weird places, it was pretty funny. Still, the photos turned out great!

Q. What’s your favorite anime/manga/game character to cosplay as?

It’s really hard to say, as I enjoy all of them! Either 1942 Cammy, since it’s really comfortable to wear, or Selvaria Bles from Valkyria Chronicles, since the costume looks pretty cool.

Q. Any cosplay plan in future?

Lots! I’m currently making Black Widow from the Marvel Comics for this weekend, but I’ve got Venus from Metal Gear Ac!d 2, Klan from Macross Frontier, Ivy from Soul Calibur V, Raiden from Metal Gear Solid 4, and Risty from Queen’s Blade planned for the coming year, among others.

Q. Do you make your costumes yourself or buy them?

I make my own costumes. There’s nothing wrong with buying costumes if you give proper credit, but I personally enjoy the challenge.

Q. Any other cosplayers you like?

Omi Gibson and Jiro in Japan are my cosplay idols, haha! They are both very good at what they do, as well as pulling off a variety of characters. Stateside, I’m a big fan of Yaya Han. She’s a deservedly a well-respected member of the cosplay community here, and she makes some of the most beautiful costumes. Harrison Krix of Volpin Props is also amazing and makes fantastic quality props and armor. I really admire his construction.

Q. Do some changes happen to you after cosplay?

It certainly promotes a drive to just create, create, create! It’s also a great way to come out of your shell if you’re shy, because you meet so many people through it. Other than that, the only changes you’ll notice after cosplaying is bits of fabric and thread all over your house!

Q. Any advice you wanna share with cosplay newbies?

If you aren’t happy with a piece of your costume, remake it until you feel confident about it! And most importantly, have fun!

Cosplayer Interview with Naccho

Sherry

Pretty Cure Cure Pine Cosplay

Italian cosplay girl Naccho accepts our interview today. It’s a pleasure for us :D. Welcome, Naccho!

Q: Please introduce yourself first.

Hello, everyone! I’m Naccho (my real name is Ilaria) and I’m 20. I live in Lecce, Italy and I’m currently studying foreign languages (English-Japanese contingent) in university. I’m lazy, very lazy. I love to eat, a lot. That’s why I don’t have a proper thin figure, but who cares! 😀 I love to draw, sing, play, write, Korean/Japanese dramas and cosplay, manga and anime, of course~

Q: What does cosplay mean to you?

Cosplay to me is a form of art. I just love all kind of arts since I love to draw, sing, play… and cosplay is just a kind of mixture of the things I love to do. The first thing I love about cosplay is to play the character. Understand him/her and playing the role perfectly, indentify myself with it. It’s something really gratifying, being able to play the characters you love and act like them with people who understand you and don’t think you’re hopelessly crazy :D!

Q: What and when was your first cosplay?

My very very first cosplay was Mifuyu Mizukagami from CLAMP gakuen kaikigenshou kenkyoukai jiken file, I only wore it in my house. I made it with a blouse and a shirt my mom had and I was of course without wig. This character has a looong and big braid and of course my hair weren’t long enough! But the first cosplay I wore at a convention was Nana, from Nana, at Romics 2005. I was again without wig and I was more fat than I am now, it was a really cosplay-fail! In fact I was uncomfortable all day. This restrained me doing any cosplay up to 2007.

Haruhi Suzumiya no Yuutsu Mikuru Asahina Cosplay

Q: What is your most memorable cosplay experience?

Every time I do a cosplay group with my friend is a memorable experience. I don’t really like doing cosplay all alone because every series has a lot of characters and cosplaying it alone makes me lonely. But, now you make me think of it, my most memorable experience was when I first met the one is my best friend now.

It was Naples Comicon 2009 and it was on a strangely VERY HOT day of April. I was on my Deidara from Naruto cosplay, me and my friends arrived near the Comicon entrance gate but the people in charge of the tickets closed the gates because there were too many people and cosplayer inside the convention (it was a castle and most of the people couldn’t fit in it). It was most likely 3pm and I was DYING from heat. Everyone was disappointed and angry, me too. But then, one of my friends said: “Look! It’s a Kaito (from Vocaloid) cosplayer!”

I was so tired, hot, annoyed and pissed off. We travelled from Bari all the morning to be there and not being able to enter just made me more pissed. So pissed that I shouted “WHO THE HECK (I used a more colorful expression than this) CARES ABOUT KAITO! I’m hot, I’m tired, I JUST WANT TO GO IN!”

That Kaito was the one who is my best friend XDD I meet her again later and we found we lived in the same region (I was from Bari, she was from Lecce, in Puglia.) And we became friends. Later, when I started university, I moved to Lecce all by myself and now we live in the same apartment block. We always (and I mean, ALWAYS) do cosplay together. She can sew and we both can style wigs, I’m trying to learn how to do arms and accessories. We always support each other! I’m very glad my other friends noticed her cosplay. If it wasn’t for it I would have never met my precious friend!

Q: What’s your favorite photo shoot?

My favorite photo shoot? I don’t often do photo shoot but my favorite is absolutely the one we made with our Fresh Pretty Cure group! We were so cheerful that day, we also won the best group award with our performance~ I was so happy that day, and my friend really made good photos. You can see all photos here.

Hetalia Denmark Cosplay

Q: What’s your favorite anime/manga/game character to cosplay as?

We can say my favorite character to cosplay as is Sora from Kingdom Hearts. It’s my cosplay dream, I always wanted to do his cosplay but I always gave it up because I was too fat. I lose some kgs and now I’m confident I can cosplay him without ridicule the character I love so much. I want to do every version of him, I can’t wait for the new KH3D game to come out *w* I already made the KHII valor form costume, though the most difficult task is to find a style a good wig for him. My first Sora wig was a really fail, I want to cosplay him nearly perfectly.

The same goes for Rei Kong from Beyblade. It was one of my first anime crush when I was in middle school. I and my best friend (cosplaying Max) are planning to do it just on march 2012. Can’t wait for it!

Q: Any cosplay plan in future?

Aw, I have a LOT of plans. I have all the 2012 year already occupied! The next cosplays I’m going to do till the end of 2011 are Yukina Kou from Sekaiichi Hatsukoi and Nezumi from No.6 (LOL. only BL series XD)

My plans for 2012 are: Cain from Starfighter, Rei Kong from Beyblade, Sora -base form- from Kingdom Hearts II, Lina Inverse from Slayers, Cure Melody from Suite Pretty Cure, Ittoki Ootoya from Uta no Prince-sama, Kanba Takakura from Mawaru Penguindrum, Karina Lyle from Tiger & Bunny, Kaito cantarella version, Sakura Kinomoto from Card Captor Sakura, Prince Crescendo from Eternal Sonata (THE CHALLENGE OF MY LIFE) and Misha from Pita Ten. Too many? I know. But with my best friend help, we’re going to make them all!

Q: Do you make your costumes yourself or buy them?

I can’t sew and I don’t have the time/will to learn it. I just don’t want! I have more interesting things to do such as drawing, singing, writing, playing piano and STUDYING XD I often buy them or get the help of my best friend to make them.

I just don’t get why people are so obsessive about sewing their cosplay. If you can’t play the character you choose well, even if you have the best costume made by yourself you lost the sense and meaning of cosplay.

I don’t know in other countries but here in Italy there’s this kind of belief: if you don’t sew the cosplay yourself you’re not a real cosplayer. Well, I’m sorry if I’m not a real cosplayer! I don’t really care, I have most interesting things to do in my life and I only want to have fun with my friends. I also want to do a good cosplay, but I just can’t/don’t want to sew. My best friend can sew and she NEVER looked down on me because I can’t sew or I don’t want to learn. Quite the contract, she often helps me finding on ebay the things I need, or she offers to sew the cosplays I want to do herself.

Di Gi Charat Rabi~en~Rose Cosplay

Q: Any other cosplayers you like?

I don’t know many Italian and foreign well-known cosplayers. I think my best friend is one of the best cosplayers I ever saw. I like Yuriko Tiger a lot, Mana Saya Takagi and Federica Chiantini, I think the cosplay they do are nearly perfect and I admire them a lot. For the foreign ones the only one I know is Haruhi Nazakura who is one of my Japanese friends who did some of the most beautiful Hetalia cosplay I saw.

Q: Do some changes happen to you after cosplay?

It depends. Sometimes I just want to cosplay more, sometimes I just want to give up because, in Italy, the cosplay world is starting to be unbearable. Hate, rancour, hostility, heated competition on which cosplay is better than another, people just could sell their soul in order to win even a small competition in even smallest conventions. And if they don’t win they start to bashing the cosplayers who won, the judges, the organization… It’s really something I can’t stand and when I see these things I want to quit and don’t ever do cosplay anymore, because I happen to organize some of the events we have in Puglia. I just want to take away the small events we have here, in order to make them understand they don’t have to kill themselves to win a contest. That’s not the meaning of cosplay!

Q: Any advice you wanna share with cosplay newbies?

The same as before: you don’t do cosplay in order to win contests. If you started cosplay because you want to win or being famous, you better end your career here. You do cosplay because you WANT it, because you want to play that character(s) you love so much, because you want to be with your friends and have fun, going to convention, buying everything your-favorite-anime-related you could, share it with your friends, make photos. You just have to HAVE FUN. You don’t have to eat your heart out because you can’t win on a convention, you can’t mortify yourself because you want to be a well-known cosplayer at all costs. Can’t you see yourself in the mirror? Don’t you are feared of what you’ve become or what you’re going to become? Please, just do cosplay for yourself and your friends, not for showing everyone else you’re good. It’s better showing you’re having fun than showing you’re dying for that prize on that competition.

Cosplayer Interview with Andreasara Cassatella

Sherry

Rin Kagamine

Thanks, Andrea, for joining in our cosplay sponsor contest and also accepting our interview. We do look forward to more cooperation with you :D.

Q1. Please introduce yourself first.

Hi! My Name is Andrea and I’m 18 years old! My nickname is Saike and I’m an Italian cosplayer since 2007. I love read fantasy books and play RPG in the free time.

Q2. What does cosplay mean to you?

I’m not sure what cosplay really means but I see the cosplay as something fun to do with your friends, and also your family, why not?

kaname madoka

Q3. What and when was your first cosplay?

I’ve forced my mother to help me sew a costume of the white mage from final fantasy III for a carnival party arranged by a friend in the winter of 2007. Nobody had figured what character I was XD.

Q4. What is your most memorable cosplay experience?

Most memorable cosplay experience is from this year’s Lucca Comics. That was my first time wearing a huge cosplay made by myself. Anyway all of my cosplay experiences have been memorable for something.

Q5. What’s your favorite photo shoot?

I have a few favorites, but one of the most recent is the one I’ve took with my Anarchy Stocking cosplay. I’ve done it with my best friend Naccholen as Panty, acting like Stocking was very funny, even if I don’t like wearing high heels XD.

Len Kagamine

Q6. What’s your favorite anime/manga/game character to cosplay as?

I like all the characters I’ve done, so this is a very hard question. One of my favorite was Miku Hatsune, I love all her costumes >.< Another one was Psychedelic Dreams Izaya from Durarara, that was one of my dream cosplay <3

Q7. Any cosplay plan in future?

Yes! The next year I’m going to do a very big costume, Count Waltz from Eternal Sonata. I hope I can complete it in time for the convention!

Q8. Do you make your costumes yourself or buy them?

I make my costumes by myself with the help of my family, especially my grandmother, I love her! The satisfaction of doing them by yourself is priceless but I don’t think it’s a bad thing buy a costume, when I want to do something in a short time it’s always the best solution.

cure berry

Q9. Any other cosplayers you like?

I like all my friends and their cosplays lol. But I also like some famous cosplayer like NadiaSK or Kaname.

Q10. Do some changes happen to you after cosplay?

I’ve learned how to do costumes by my grandmother and learned to be more self-confident.

Q11. Any advice you wanna share with cosplay newbies?

Cosplay is for fun and not for win an important prize. Spending time with your friends or people who have your same interest is more fun than compete for a lame figure or a piece of paper. Don’t feel depressed if you receive some critics on one of your cosplay, they must be a push to improve for the next time!