CQ-Magazine #5 English Version

Issue

05

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Year 1 www.facebook.com/cosplayersquito n

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Next Stop

INTERNATIONAL INTERVIEW:

ELFFI / FINLAND JENNIFER / NETHERLANDS CQ INTERVIEW:

Mariela (Azuki) Cobos

3rd entry of Dante’s Experience in Japan

Tips & Tricks

Emergency Kit for Conventions

Get To Know...

Small profile of international cosplayers

EDITORIAL TEAM

General Edition: Guillermo Guevara Style Correction: Ana María Guevara Translations: Annie Jiménez / Andrea Parra / Ana María Guevara Design and Layout: Guillermo Guevara Writers: <International Interview> Andrea Parra / Ana Jiménes <Get to Know...> Annie Jiménez <Metronome> Santiago Villamizar <Tips & Tricks> Wang Shih Chin <Achievement Unlocked> David Schuster <Next Stop> Daniel Quezada <Photo Gallery> Andrea Parra / Ana Jiménez <CQ Interview> Andrea Parra <Correspondent> Kiren Liddell (México) <Random Question> Annie Jiménez Contact: cosplayersquito@gmail.com Web: www.facebook.com/cosplayersquito Cover Photo by Calssara A Publication by CQ MAGAZINE

INDEX INTERNATIONAL INTERVIEW 4 GET TO KNOW

12

14 NEXT STOP 18 METRONOME 22 TIPS & TRICKS 24 CQ INTERVIEW 28 PHOTO GALLERY ACHIEVEMENT UNLOCKED 42 44 CORRESPONDENT 46 RANDOM QUESTION CQ MAGAZINE

INTERNATIONAL INTERVIEW In this section you will meet many personalities in the cosplay world

ELFFI

I

n the past editions, we had the chance to present amazing cosplayers and photographers of all around the world, but they all have been women and we think that this anniversary edition is the perfect opportunity to present an amazing male cosplayer known as Elffi Cosplay.

TA I G A K A G A M I <KUROKO NO BASUKE> P HOTO BY Z W E I T

13,000 episodes of anime in all his life and in them he searches for characters similar to him who have the same facial expressions, face and especially, his height. “I’m really tall, you know, almost 190cm, so sometimes it’s really hard to find a character that suits me. For example, as I’m kind of strict with these things, I have exactly the same height, weight and age as Barnaby Brooks Jr. from Tiger&Bunny, which was one of the reasons I cosplayed as him. My partner (Kotetsu) was also very similar to his character and we had a great photo-shoot in Paris, France for the Cosmode magazine in Japan.” That is also the reason why he chooses characters from shounen animes, because they tend to be similar to him.

With 25 years old, Janne from Finland entered the cosplay world in 2006. He saw Spirited Away

by Hayao Miyazaki with one of his cousins and really enjoyed the atmosphere and music. He kept borrowing more and more and started to watch series like Bleach and Full Metal Alchemist. One of his good friends got interested in the same things and they decided to make their first cosplays for Animecon 2006. “My family is really artistic and many of us are musicians and artists, so I shared the interest, my good eye and my skills He prepares himself for a cosplay going to the gym, for crafts and sewing. I really like to make things starting a diet and getting bigger. He also likes to with my own hands.” make props and he is especially interested in this subject. His favorite materials for this purpose are When choosing his next characters, he watches Worbla, Wonderflex and cardboard. Everything he lots of anime. Currently, he has watched around knows about cosplay he learned by himself. Unlike 4 CQ MAGAZINE

INTERNATIONAL INTERVIEW and costume making is a girly hobby and that it’s not the most masculine thing in the world.

They are just stereotypes like boys liking cars and stuff like that.”

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What Elffi enjoys the most is going to conventions, where he can meet cosplayers from all around the world. He used to compete at first, but now he enjoys being a judge. He has traveled to over 10 countries in three continents and this he is planning to travel to the eleventh. A funny anecdote he shared with us was when in one of his travels to Spain people thought he had gone through a sex change surgery and they asked him how it felt to be a girl.

Metronome Tips & Tricks CQ Interview GILDARTS CLIVE < F A I R Y TA I L > P HOTO BY C A L S SA R A

Photo Gallery

He thinks that the hardest thing of making a cosplay is “trying to make it absolutely perfect.

It’s impossible”. Fortunately, he hasn’t faced any problems for making cosplay, as in his country cosplay is really well accepted and most people enjoy it a lot. He didn’t have any problems with his family either, because most of them are artists and support him; they think is a nice hobby. We ask him what he thinks about most people considering cosplay to be more of a woman’s hobby and he told us that “people tends to think that sewing

International Interview

many other cosplayers, he doesn’t watch a lot of tutorials online; he likes to figure out things by his own. It is interesting to know that he does all of this on his free time. Elffi attends two Universities for his studies in Asian business and Japanology and works from time to time, but cosplay has become his lifestyle and he always makes time for it.

Achievement Correspondent Unlocked

CQ MAGAZINE 5

Random Question

JECHT < F I N A L F A N TA S Y D I S S I D I A > P HOTO BY C A L S SA R A

Random Question

Correspondent Achievement Unlocked

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International Interview

INTERNATIONAL INTERVIEW

6 CQ MAGAZINE

VA S H T H E S TA M P E D E <TRIGUN> P HOTO BY JAC O B A B E R G

INTERNATIONAL INTERVIEW

Metronome Tips & Tricks CQ Interview

BARNABY BROOKS <TIGER&BUNNY> P HOTO BY C A L S SA R A

We are looking forward to see his future projects and we wish him the best. It truly was an honor to have him in this anniversary edition.

Next Stop

https://www.facebook.com/ElffiCosplay

Get to Know...

convention abroad opened his eyes to the world of international cosplay. Nowadays, he is an organizer, a translator for the second time and He represented Finland in 2011 WCS and he also a judge, so it would be awkward for him to told us the characters he chose were Vash the become a contestant again. For those who want Stampede in the Finnish preliminaries, and Zhao to participate in the WCS, Elffi has a little advice: Yun in the championships in Japan. What he liked â&#x20AC;&#x153;Become friends with as many people as you the most about this experience was meeting can and enjoy every moment.â&#x20AC;? the other finalists and the fact this was his first Seven years have passed since his first cosplay and now all his fans have had the chance to see him grow and become a great cosplayer really focused on the details. Cosplay has brought to his life a better health, better body, thousands of new friends, lots of travelling, new ways of thinking, languages skills, and a lot of things to be grateful for. He is truly an example for us cosplayers. If you want to know more about this cosplayer and about his work, we invite you to visit his fan page:

International Interview

Did you know that Elffi is a former WCS contestant?

Photo Gallery Achievement Correspondent Unlocked GILGAMESH < F AT E ATA R A X I A > P HOTO BY H A N N A H Y T T I N E N

CQ MAGAZINE 7

Random Question

SHURA <RAGNAROK ONLINE> P HOTO BY N I E W P HOTO G R A P H Y

JENNIFER

Random Question

Correspondent Achievement Unlocked

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International Interview

INTERNATIONAL INTERVIEW

THROUGH OTHER EYES < S TAY A WAY >

M

any people has interest on cosplay, make up or photography, but on Jennifer´s blog you can find all of them mixed on her interesting and colorful graphic work. Jennifer is a beautiful young lady from Netherlands who likes anime and manga and who started to show interest in photography at a very young age.

always loved Photoshopping and I’m lucky my highschool teached me how to work with that program.”

Jenn got really serious doing her own conceptual work in 2009 and uploaded all her pictures in her Deviantart account. Back then, she was really interested in macro photography and the complex but beautiful design of eyes, editing some of her self-shot.

Jennifer started blogging in May 2011 and she was actually inspired by other bloggers like Eki (http:// www.ekiblog.com/) and Foki (http://fokis.se/).

Jennifer really loves to make colors pop in her pictures so they don’t look too plain or boring.

In fact, that’s how we got to know her. The color mixture and some portraits of well known “I got my first digital camera when I was 11 characters have made eco on the photography and started to imitate my dad, since he really and geek world; by now, her blog and websites liked to take pictures as well.” have thousands of followers.

“I really loved their professional looking pictures and their way of blogging. Eki was more about tutorials and reviews and Foki was more about the daily life. I think I chose the-tutorial-and-review kind of blog because I really loved makeup and was also trying out lenses!”

“I mostly took pictures of my hamsters and tried to make them look as good as the real macro pictures I’ve seen on Deviantart. I still had a compact camera at that time, and after I finally got my DSLR camera, I tried even more to get perfect pictures with bokeh, etc... After Two months later Jenn bought her first pair of circle that I really got more into editing the pics, and lenses. They were Tsubasa’s line of circle lenses tried to learn more skills in photoshopping. I and she bought the bambi green ones, from Geo. 8 CQ MAGAZINE

INTERNATIONAL INTERVIEW

Get to Know... <BLEND>

In her reviews, Jenn looks like an anime girl with her big eyes and colored hair and we asked her if she thought that was what made her work different from other bloggers’s.

CQ Interview

She also has plenty of make up tutorials in her blog. She learned to use make up watching mostly the youtube Guru Michelle Phan, but Jenn also creates a lot of random looks herself.

Metronome Tips & Tricks

In September, Jenn got her first sponsored lenses from Lensvillage.com. She remembers she was Some graphic artists get criticism about the use and really happy. abuse of Photoshop, we really wanted to know about her perspective as photographer.

“I just couldn’t believe it!” ¨I think as long as you use it for art or something It didn’t really last long since It was a one time else that actually has a great meaning behind it, sponsoring, but after another 2 months or so, I don’t see any problems. I do understand that if the circle lens company Uniqso(.com) contacted people are really abusing photoshop to trick people, Jenn to sponsor their lenses as well and they are or just trolling someone on the internet, it may still sponsoring her. leave people wondering if things are real or not…¨

Next Stop

To always be thinking on what to do next requires some source of inspiration and Jenn has her own, such as Cristina Otero, Apokryphia Art, Jingna Zhang, Model Ophelia Overdose, Linki Lutz make-up, Roxanne RocknRoll make-up, Rose shock, all distinguished personalities of fashion and beauty photography.

International Interview

“I can’t remember the full name and I never ever went to an eye doctor to test out if my eyes were good enough to even wear lenses. I just took a big risk and tried them immediately!

And yes, I think for every beginner it is pretty annoying to get them in for the very first time…

It took me an hour or so to get them both in and experienced a lot of frustration that day (laughs) . But yeah… they didn’t hurt and felt very comfortable! I was so happy I wore them every day. That was also the start of the circle lenses’ reviews.”

Photo Gallery Achievement Correspondent Unlocked Random Question <CURSE OF THE DAMNED>

CQ MAGAZINE 9

Random Question

Correspondent Achievement Unlocked

Photo Gallery

CQ Interview

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International Interview

INTERNATIONAL INTERVIEW

<DARK PRINCESS>

10 CQ MAGAZINE

<BITTER> <AS GOOD AS DEAD>

<THRANDUIL>

INTERNATIONAL INTERVIEW International Interview

(Laughs) Oh wow, I never saw myself like one of the anime girls, but I don’t know if that makes me different from others. A lot of girls are doing circle lens reviews as well, and probably have even been doing them longer than me. I do try to make a difference with my make-up looks in my own works to hopefully (crosses fingers) stand out one day.

Get to Know...

Next Stop

Which are the animes and mangas you like the most and why?

Metronome Tips & Tricks

“I am really into the shoujo lovey dovey school life dramas! My very favorite manga of all times would be “Moe Kare!!”. I just love how she likes this cute guy in the beginning and after that he likes her and then this other guy comes along that looks like the first guy… and so on (laughs) Okay, that’s a weird explanation.

Anyway, about the anime I have to say “Tokyo Mew Mew” since it was also my very first anime I watched on youtube and I’m still attached to the cute characters until this day! I’m trying to buy the whole anime in manga’s, but since I’m short in cash I’ll have to wait for a while (sad face).”

CQ Interview

Have you ever cosplayed? Tell us your experience.

We really hope Jennifer keeps improving her artwork through photography. Thanks very much, Jenn, for answering!

If you want to know more about this talented artist, you can follow her work on:

http://www.njennifer.blogspot.com/

CQ MAGAZINE 11

Random Question

“At the moment, I am really into the self portrait and creating something different in every picture I take, like trying to transform

myself into some kind of monster in some sort of scene or just creating something different with make-up. I’ve been really inspired by music and pictures lately. Whenever I have an idea, I get excited to begin immediately after I get home! I feel really happy for having something that excites me so much and I hope it will last in the future.”

Achievement Correspondent Unlocked

Tell us about your next evil plan! What we are going to expect about you and your work?

< F E M A L E T I TA N >

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“Yes! My first time ever was last year in august 2012. I went as Misaki Mei from the anime “Another”, but I did not have a wig, I only had the actual uniform on and used my own bone tights and some John Lennon glasses to complete the outfit. I also had purple and blue hair back then and thought it would look interesting with the whole look (laughs).

I went with my boyfriend to an anime convention and we had a pretty nice time there! I would love to cosplay again in the future!”

GET TO KNOW...

In this section of our Magazine we will have a little peak on some International Cosplayers.

INORI YUZURIHA < G U I LT Y C R O W N > P HOTO BY R A FA E L F E R R E I R A

NAME:

SOFÍA

NICKNAME:

SOPHIE

COUNTRY:

PORTUGAL

YEARS IN COSPLAY:

6 YEARS

FIRST COSPLAY:

RAKKA <HAIBANE RENMEI>

FAVORITE CHARACTER

INORI YUZURIHA

FOR COSPLAY:

<GUILTY CROWN>

FAVORITE ANIME:

AIR

WEBSITES:

SOPHIE-ART.DEVIANTART.COM

You can show some support visiting their websites.

Share cosplay madness all over the world!

12 CQ MAGAZINE

ALICE < PA N D O R A H E A R T S > P HOTO BY R A FA E L F E R R E I R A

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TERU PHANTOMHIVE

COUNTRY:

CHILE

YEARS IN COSPLAY:

2 AND A HALF YEARS

FIRST COSPLAY:

LEN <VOCALOIDS>

FAVORITE CHARACTER

CIEL PHANTOMHIVE

FOR COSPLAY:

<KUROSHITSUJI>

FAVORITE ANIME:

KUROSHITSUJI

WEBSITES:

ELMUNDODETERU. BLOGSPOT.COM

C I E L P H A N TO M H I V E <KUROSHITSUJI> P HOTO BY C R IS T I A N D U R Á N

You can show some support visiting their websites.

Share cosplay madness all over the world!

Metronome Tips & Tricks

WORLDCOSPLAY.NET/ MEMBER/TERUPHANTOMHIVE/

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NICKNAME:

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EDUARDO PACHECHO

International Interview

NAME:

CQ Interview Photo Gallery Achievement Correspondent Unlocked

CQ MAGAZINE 13

Random Question

LINK <LEGEND OF ZELDA> P HOTO BY C R IS T I A N D U R Á N

NEXT STOP Experiences of people traveling from and to many locations of the world

DANTE H. CLOUD

Member of Cosplayers Quito and Founder of Federación Ecuatoriana de Pokémon ‘FEP’ (Ecuador’s Pokémon Federation). He has spread the Japanese culture and language since 2008 and he has helped in the organization of anime and comic events and conventions, both independently and with the clubs he belonged to.

Currently he is focused on other social juvenile aspects.

An Otaku

in J apan

(Part 3 of 3)

Hi everyone!

W

hen visiting Tokyo, it is mandatory to visit the main districts of the city, which have many landmarks, commercial areas and nightlife, but for otakus and gamers there are some must-go places that are a little far from the main otaku districts: Akihabara, Nakano and Ikebukuro. In this issue, I will introduce four amazing stores that otaku and gamers MUST visit in Tokyo. They are not easy to find, so you’ll need good orientation skills to find them and to be in good shape since you will be walking a lot. And even though visiting this store is a great experience, it’s not always such a good idea to buy in them.

<JUMP SHOP>

and also in many of the biggest cities in Japan, this store has a big stock of merchandise of many of the Shonen Jump series, but you will mainly find merchandise of the most popular ones. It has a good range of prices, although the best stuff (as always) can have a very high price. The store is so packed with things that it seems it may explode anytime, and the weekends it is simply impossible to put a foot in it. It is best to go during the week and before six o’clock in the afternoon.

What to buy: I recommend to buy little and cheap <JUMP SHOP> merchandising, such as bandanas, keychains, fans and flags. The store also offers exclusive Every hardcore fan of the mangas published in merchandise, but it is pretty expensive. the weekly manga magazine Shonen Jump (like One Piece, Dragon Ball and Naruto) will find this Location: You will find one of its two locations store is a paradise. With two locations in Tokyo, in the Tokyo Dome Complex (Korakuen station, 14 CQ MAGAZINE

NEXT STOP in all of its forms and you will also find from stuffed animals, action figures and model kits to pencils, plates and socks.

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Next Stop Metronome Tips & Tricks

What to buy: Exclusive merchandise you wouldnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t find in department or specialized stores (for example, you can find TCG items in Yellow Submarine, a store specialized in TCG) Exclusive merchandise is in stock for a limited time and is <POKĂ&#x2030;MON CENTER> more expensive than regular merchandise, so you will have to investigate and not be impulsive.

It is one of the must-go places in Tokyo for a It is best to buy items like stuffed animals, model Pokemon fan like me and is located in the south kits and figures in other stores, where you will of Tokyo, in Hamamatsucho (station of Yamanote find them at a better price. line of the JR East or Daimon Station of the Asakusa and Oedo lines of Tokyo Metro). The Pokemon Location: A building in the Hamamatsucho/ Center offers a huge quantity of merchandise, Daimon sector, in the opposite direction of the many of which is exclusive and hard to find in the Tokyo Tower. You can also find this store in the west. You will always find Pikachu merchandising main cities of Japan and the Pokemon Center in

International Interview

Marunouchi and Namboku lines of Tokyo Metro), near the stadium. You will find the other Jump Shop inside the Tokyo Station in the Character Street section (where there are some other interesting stores), but it is hard to find. If you are in Yokohama, visit the emblematic building, the Minato Mirai; you can find a Jump Shop in the fourth floor.

CQ Interview Photo Gallery Achievement Correspondent Unlocked Random Question <POKEMON CENTER>

CQ MAGAZINE 15

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NEXT STOP Namba, Osaka and Minato Mirai, Yokohama ( in front of the Jump Shop) stand out. One of the best Pokemon Centers is the one in Fukushima, which was created to help children overcome the Tohoku Earthquake in 2011. This store has exclusive merchandise you can’t get in other Pokemon Centers and a part of its earnings go to help the victims of this tragedy.

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<EVANGELION STORE> I have not visited this store, since it opened in autumn of 2011 (I went to Japan in 2010), but critics and reviews in specialized websites claim it is a unique place specialized in Evangelion merchandise, specially clothes and shoes, though you will also find small souvenirs like candies and mugs. This store has two floors and the colors of the evas stand out, as the real size figure of Rei (which is not for sale ^_^). It is a paradise for fans of Evangelion.

The store closed in the 2010 and Square Enix decided to open a new store with a new concept of combining a store with a cafeteria, which is now called Artnia Square Enix and is located near Square Enix headquarters.

What to buy: The new store offers much of the same merchandise as the old one. You will mostly find plushes and actions figures of Dragon Quest, Final Fantasy and Kingdom Hearts. If you are a super fan of these games, I strongly recommend to save money to buy something special. If you are not a hardcore fan, just order an ice cream and enjoy the experience.

Location: It is easier to find than the old store, which was in middle of nowhere in Shinjuku district. This store is in Shinjuku too, but near the Square Enix headquarters. You will have to take the Oedo (Toei) or Fukutoshin line of the Tokyo Metro, to Higashi Shinjuku station. Just find your way using the Square Enix’s building as a reference.

What to buy: Well, this store has merchandise Until next time! that for being special and for fans, tends to be a little expensive, so I suggest you have an specific budget for this store. If you really loves this series, I strongly recommend to buy something special and unique that is worth your money. If you are not, then you’ll be good buying candies, chocolates and mugs, which can be a good souvenir.

Location: You will find this store in Harajuku (Yamanote line of the JR East, Meiji-jingu-mae Station of the Fukutoshin Line of Tokyo Metro), following of Takeshita Dori, the commercial street in Harajuku known for its alternative fashion (you will find “normal” fashion in the nearby Omotesando Street). It is not far, but it is not easy to find. My advice: print a map and mark well the location. <ARTNIA SQUARE ENIX> In my trip to Tokyo, I visited the store Square Enix Showcase and I can honestly say it was amazing. I went twice. The most amazing thing of the store: a real size figure of Sephiroth.

16 CQ MAGAZINE

< A R T N I A S Q UA R E E N I X >

PRĂ&#x201C;XIMA PARADA

International Interview

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CQ MAGAZINE 17

METRONOME Read the news about asian artists and music and their representatives around the world

<COURTESY OF SLAK 0.1>

I

n the musical environment, the k-pop is popular not only in the east but throughout the world, giving a new meaning to the old “Boy bands” and “Girl bands”.

This genre is presented to the world primarily with large groups of boys and girls, which attract the audience with their catchy rhythms, variation of voices and stunning choreographies. This has led many of it’s followers to interpret their own choreographic versions of familiar songs. This new style of covers is performed worldwide and in this case, Ecuador don’t fall behind. CQ Magazine brings up an exclusive interview with Slak 0.1, a very experienced choreography group nationwide. Slak 0.1 has currently 3 members, Aylin, K © and Paz, and two of them will tell us how they began and some of their experiences in this exciting genre.

K©: I think we are a group that makes k-pop choreography.

We cover songs the songs we like and we don’t follow just one group.

CQM: Do you use only k-pop groups or you would also work with j-pop songs or even using Western pop?

Aylin: At the moment, we are more focused on k-pop. We have talked about making some j-pop and c-pop covers, and I even asked the girls if they would like to compete in ciad with Western songs like Black Queen.

CQM: Welcome! It’s a pleasure to have you two in this interview and as K© requested the last time we met, let’s start with the basic question. ¿Where did the name SLAK 0.1. came from?

Aylin: Thank you for having us. Slak came up by joining the letters of words that identified K© and me. It sure took us some time to organize them and to make the name sound nice.

CQM: How would you define your group? Is it a tribute band, a k-pop choreography group or is there any special definition?

18 CQ MAGAZINE

<COURTESY OF SLAK 0.1>

METRONOME

CQM: At that time there were only two of you?

Get to Know...

Aylin: Our first presentation was in Akuma no Party with the choreography of Touch by Miss A.

International Interview

K©: We participated under the name “Slak Hallyu”, because before that we participated in an anime event, our first and last one! (laughs)

Aylin: Yes, just the two of us.

CQM: So when and how did Paz joined the group?

CQ Interview Photo Gallery Achievement Correspondent Unlocked

K©: We recorded the practices but not with an outfit planned. I was only on a “personal level”, right Aylin?

Metronome Tips & Tricks

CQM: So the desire is there and you just need to K©: Paz had also participated in the Hallyu Fest and find the right songs. Going back to the beginnings had her own youtube channel. I met her there before of the group, what motivated you to create Slak 0.1? seeing her in k-pop contests. After the Hallyu contest, she invited me to dance a song with her. We were afraid K©: Aylin knew about k-pop and knew how to dance. to ask her to form part of Slak and we were scared she I watched MV but I never thought I would end up would turn us down. Eventually, Aylin asked her and dancing them. Well, I tried and failed (laughs). We voila! She accepted with excitement. were motivated to make a group of high projection for competitions, and then we started with Hallyu Aylin: We found out later that she had participated in Fest last year, which was sponsored and conducted Akuma No Party as well. by the Korean embassy. But ​​ before that, we practiced it just to practice.

CQM: Well, from what I saw in your latest videos, she fitted well to the pace of the group.

CQM: Before the festivals held by the embassy, did you thought about recording yourself and uploading K©: At the beginning, when we were two, Aylin just the videos to make yourselves known or did you had to correct me. Now she has to correct us both. wanted to keep the group on a personal level?

Do you feel tired, Aylin? (laughs)

Next Stop

<COURTESY OF SLAK 0.1>

Aylin: Totally. It was more personal and it was to show K© she had everything she needed to dance.

K©: Aylin awoke a hidden talent in me!

CQM: (laughs) It happens. So, when was your first public presentation as Slak? Because you are now well known cosplayers around here.

Random Question

Aylin: Only K© is known (laughs). With Slak as the official name, our first presentation was at the Hallyu Fest. <COURTESY OF SLAK 0.1>

CQ MAGAZINE 19

International Interview

I feel healthier dancing on the weekends. It’s like doing regular exercise without going to the gym.

K©: Delicate scolding (laughs).

K©: Several days a week if it’s necessary.

Aylin: But when there is a competition, we do practice a lot of hours.

Aylin: I made her dance the choreography by herself Aylin: And we take turns to practice with each member. to make her sweat and to grow strength. In the end, Paz proved herself.

CQM: You don’t practice together every session?

CQM: (Laughs) Well, this question is a little out of topic K©: We cannot always practice the three of us because but I am interested, have you suffered any injuries in we are not always on holidays at the same time. practices or presentations?

CQM: ¿In what contests you have participated and what K©: Aylin was injured in the three-stage contest , in the awards have you won?

K-Star challenge.

K©: - Akuma No Party, 2nd place Aylin: But it was not for Slak, it was for the ballet. We - Hallyu Fest, 2nd Place have not injured ourselves since then, unless having - K-Star Challenge, 1st place sore muscles for a week counts as an injury.

- Hariken Cosplay, there were just one winner and no runner-ups.

CQM: That leads me to another question. How many hours do you practice per week? Do you have some Among the awards we won a travel to Tonsupa routine exercises you do separately? for 8 people, a purchase Order of 75 USD in K-pop Live, K-pop goodies such as accessories, K©: We just practice the Saturdays, not many hours. socks, pendants and CDs, and other stuff.

Two or three when there are no contests.

CQM: Well, you could say you now have enough Aylin: I’m going to include a warm up before the recognition in the national k-pop scene. practice. Only K © suffered that with me at the beginning.

K©: We don’t know or the people don’t want to admit it (laughs). We have few likes but we know that this K©: Yes, we used to do crunches, now we don’t, but does not reflect if our work is good or bad.

Random Question

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Aylin: No, you two dance well now. At first, if it was a bit difficult to develop the choreographies since K © took a bit of my strong dance style, but on the other hand, Paz was very subtle in her movements. The poor girl received quite a few scolding from me.

Get to Know...

METRONOME

20 CQ MAGAZINE

<COURTESY OF SLAK 0.1>

METRONOME International Interview

CQM: Well, you’re spreading your name around and that’s an important step. Speaking of projects, what are your short-term projects?

Get to Know...

K©: I want to make more videos and the girls want to prepare themselves for a contest with an undefined date. We would also love to increase the number of members, but we haven’t found candidates. I have tried to hunt and recruit people like Nick Fury, but we haven’t found anyone yet.

Next Stop

CQM: I assume you’re only recruiting women.

CQM: So, you would be willing to include men in your group?

K©: Not as regular members of the group but yes for choreographies that require men.

<COURTESY OF SLAK 0.1>

Next year we will go with full force, with more members and more impact.

CQ MAGAZINE 21

Random Question

facebook.com/SlakGirls

Achievement Correspondent Unlocked

K©: This year’s event passed and we didn’t participate.

Photo Gallery

Aylin: I don’t think we’ll be singing. Nobody knows Aylin: Thank you for choosing us to do this interview. how to speak Korean and for my part, I don’t know how to sing.

CQ Magazine invites you to visit their work on their Facebook pages and Youtube and support these talented girls to go CQM: Do you know if there is any international k-pop ahead and accomplish all their projects as a group! choreography contest and if there is, do you plan to represent the country? youtube.com/user/SLAKgirls

CQ Interview

Aylin: Exactly, next year we will try to participate in the CQM: What about your long-term plans? Would you american contests of K-pop dance and covers. like to continue Slak as a hobby or make it a source of income?

CQM: Awesome, here we will be supporting you fully. Do you have any message you want to give your readers and Aylin: I have dreamed of earning money with Slak. I dream the general public? that maybe in a not so far future, when k-pop becomes stronger in Ecuador, the Korean embassy might hire us for Aylin: Support us! an event or we might be called to perform in Guayaquil and they would pay us the trip so we could perform. I see Slak K©: I would like to thank Red Tide, who were in more as long term coexistence between people and friends the contests. Stop by our Facebook and YouTube with common tastes. pages, we are the ones with more k-pop dance covers videos nationwide.

CQM: Would you like to go on as a k-pop choreography group or is there a plan to compose a song and release CQM: Well, thanks again for the interview and good luck in an original single? all your projects.

Metronome Tips & Tricks

K©: No, there are choreographies with men in the back.

TIPS & TRICKS Tips and tricks from cosplayers to cosplayers

EMERGENCY KIT

A R C H I V O P E R S O N A L D E L A AU TO R A

When you go to a convention in your city or in a Silicone sticks + glue gun city far away, you always have to keep in mind what you might need in case something unexpected If you are taking with you any kind of accessory, the happens. In this article, I will explain how useful it glue gun will save you if for any reason something is for cosplayers to have an emergency kit. breaks or falls down.

A bottle of water

Who would ever think of bringing a bottle of water when our minds are completely focused on cosplay? However, water is extremely important, whether you are wearing cosplay or not.

Safety Pins

A couple of this can be true lifesavers, especially when you somehow need to adjust your cosplay and in tons of different situations. These are really useful.

Threads, needle and scissors

Having white and black thread and one in your costumeâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s color can save you from a bad time.

22 CQ MAGAZINE

TIPS & TRICKS Extra Money

This small accessories will keep your hair and wig In case something unexpected happens, to buy a snack, a in place. If the hairstyle of your wig needs extra souvenir or an anime knick-knack or simply to take a cab. help, don’t forget to bring some bobby pins.

International Interview

Bobby pins

Get to Know...

Next Stop

Makeup

Hair brush

How many times have we forgotten to bring this with us?

It’s definitely one of those things that shouldn’t miss!

Pain Killers

Extra clothes and shoes

When the convention is over, you can return to the comfortable clothes you use daily.

CQ MAGAZINE 23

Random Question

All the mentioned items are really useful, but if you want to bring anything else, just remember that you are wearing a cosplay and that it’s best to keep it comfortable at all times. Good luck at the convention and have fun!

Achievement Correspondent Unlocked

In case you have a headache during the convention.

Photo Gallery

It’s necessary and it’s always with us, whether it is to check the time or to communicate with another cosplayer, friend, or your parents. And if you want to take with you some good memories, never forget to bring a camera.

CQ Interview

Cellphone and Camera

Metronome Tips & Tricks

Powder, lipstick and any other item to retouch your makeup.

CQ INTERVIEW

Getting to know the members of Cosplayers Quito

AZUKI O

n this anniversary edition of CQ magazine, we would like to present to you a member of Cosplayers Quito whose vision shows us how beautiful and entertaining the world is through the lens of a camera. Mariela Cobos is one of the members of CQ who better represents the principles and the intention

RANDOM FACTS: -Favorite Anime: X from CLAMP -Favorite Animal: My cat Saturno!

-Favorite Food: Chinese -Favorite Book: “Momo” by Michael Ende.

-Favorite Color: Green. Yes, green. Not blue.

-Favorite Camera Brand: My camera is a Nikon!

24 CQ MAGAZINE

C AT W O M A N < B AT M A N > P HOTO BY J O S É A R A U J O

of Cosplayes Quito. This talented photographer has been around since the very beginning of the otaku culture in Ecuador and has seen its evolution through the years. Fun, cat lover (especially of her cat Saturn), creative, talented, decided, and out of the limits, we introduce you to Azulita!

With a degree in Engineering of Digital Design and Multimedia, Azulita has focused her artistic view into photography, a talent we can see without any doubt on each one of her pieces. This level has been reached with hard preparation through curses inside the country and overseas and this love for photography comes from the fascination with beauty she has always had. “Of course, at a beginning I didn’t saw it as something I could use in my professional live. It was more something I enjoyed a lot and that made me sensitive to certain types of art”.

Her favorite gender of photography is the portrait, although she also likes fashion photography. When she photographs a cosplayer, she tries to capture

CQ INTERVIEW International Interview Get to Know...

Next Stop <DÍAS EXTRAÑOS> MODEL: JESSY

Photo Gallery Achievement Correspondent Unlocked Random Question

CQ MAGAZINE 25

CQ Interview

light or I come up with an idea that obsesses me; sometimes the ideas came from music, literature, movies or from some experience. You have to always keep looking.” This talent has allowed her to work on music and clothes publications and “It is not just about someone with a costume, there has allowed some of her work to be in collective are a lot of things being considered, as the selection expositions and in publications of urban art. of the character, the making of the costume and its characterization”.

Besides photography, Azulita enjoys doing other activities on her free time, like singing. “I can hold On the other side, she allows herself some artistic on more time it a karaoke than a Japanese”. license to take into account the personality and warmth To write scripts and illustrate are also part of her of the cosplayer and she told us that it’s really hard interest and of course, cosplay. Azuki, another of for her to take a photo of a model whose personality her nicknames, was one of the first cosplayers it the generates certain rejection in her. country and she would like to have more time for it.

Meanwhile, she works so she can in the near future The artists she admires the most and she use as do her master in photography and to reach her goal inspiration are Diane Arbus, Miles Aldridge, Annie of having an individual exhibition.

Leibovitz and Mika Ninagawa. “I’m also inspired by psychedelic music and English rock”. She told us Azuki became a part of Cosplayers Quito thanks that what she likes the most about photography is to to Tatiana Fernandez (read about her in CQhave the ability to steal pieces of time and to share Magazine#2). “It’s amazing to found so many them with the rest of people. “I fall in love with some valuable people in one place.” the character being portrayed and the cosplayer as an individual. She feels a great love for manga, the Japanese culture and the world of comics in general and she appreciates cosplay as an artistic manifestation.

Metronome Tips & Tricks

<CANDY> MODELS: CINNAMON ANNIE & KAZE

Random Question

Correspondent Achievement Unlocked

Photo Gallery

CQ Interview

Tips & Tricks Metronome

Next Stop

Get to Know...

International Interview

CQ INTERVIEW

26 CQ MAGAZINE

<DÍAS EXTRAÑOS> MODEL:STEPH VELÁSTEGUI

CQ INTERVIEW International Interview

She knows the ecuadorian otaku world since the beginning and she thinks that many aspects, like technology, have helped to expand this culture around the country and we now have easy access to the information, which is a positive thing for all of us with the otaku gen. On the other side, she thinks that there’s a lot to do, like enhancing the events with the presence of mangakas and to show comics as an art. She thinks it is in our hands to be more critical about the events, the series we watch and about what others sell us. “There are series and really good authors that go beyond what’s commercial and beyond the over exploitation of feminine sexuality.” She thinks that our community should be more critical, not in the sense of criticizing others, but improving as persons and proposing more options.

Get to Know...

Next Stop Metronome Tips & Tricks

To finish, Azuki would like to give an advise to all of our readers that love photography: “Basically, it takes a lot of effort and love, which reminds me of an advice that Abbas, a photographer I like, gave to young photographers: Get a good pair of walking shoes and…fall in love. I just have to say don’t let anyone tell you what to do.”

CQ Interview

If you want to know more about her, we invite you to check her website: www.azulita.net

< F A S H I O N S H O OT > MODEL: CINNAMON ANNIE

Photo Gallery Achievement Correspondent Unlocked Random Question

<DÍAS EXTRAÑOS> M O D E L : M A R Í A I S A B E L C E VA L L O S

CQ MAGAZINE 27

PHOTO GALLERY

CQ-MAGAZINE made an online gathering for its anniversary edition. We proudly present the judgesâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; and readersâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; favorites!

O

ur first anniversary as a magazine has arrived! To thank all our readers and followers through this year, we decided to publish your amazing photos here in our gallery. Thanks to our amazing judges, we proudly announce the winners of our Anniversary Contest. The

BELL DARKBELLPHON <ECUADOR> Belen is from Ecuador and has been cosplaying for some years now. She showed from the beginning a great passion for the characters she represents and some of her photos have been published on Cosmode representing her country. She has appeared in some

28 CQ MAGAZINE

local media interviews sharing her knowledge about this hobby that is still young in Ecuador. She keeps preparing more outfits and presenting them in local events, and at the same time she performs as a keyboard player in the cover band she belongs to.

hard task of choosing only 10 photos was done by four talented cosplayers from different countries and here you have a short description of each one of them. Thanks to all of the contestants for their participation and enthusiasm!

SASA TWINS <MEXICO> Saku y Sayu, from Mexico, have been doing cosplay for four years and have amazed us from the beginning with their presentations and cosplays duos. They have participated in different contests and events, and that has led them to be judges. In this occasion, we summoned

them from far away. They are fans of CLAMP, videogames and anime in general. They make their own costumes and their work has been published in different international interviews. Sisters and cosplay duo, 多what more fan service can we ask? They are our judges 2x1.

ANDREW <EL SALVADOR> This cosplayer from El Salvador started doing cosplay in 2009, just as Belen and the Twins.

Andrew has gone to conventions in other countries and has been judge several times. He is a gamer

and an anime lover. He has been working on his propmaker skills through the years, and now he keeps adding new characters to his cosplay list, all of them great and diverse.

CQ MAGAZINE 29

PHOTO GALLERY People’s choice

Cosplayers: CIELU & SAORI Country: POLAND 30 CQ MAGAZINE

Character: KAITO AND GAKUPO <SANDPLAYSINGINGOF THEDRAGON, VOCALOID> Photographer: PANDORCIA PHOTOGRAPHY

PHOTO GALLERY 10ยบ

Cosplayer: MARY ALFARO Cร RDOBA Country: COSTA RICA

Character: I-NO <GUILTY GEAR> Photographer: JORGE ARROYO ALFARO CQ MAGAZINE 31

PHOTO GALLERY 9º

Cosplayer: KURICURRY Country: PHILIPPINES 32 CQ MAGAZINE

Character: SABER ALTER <FATE STAY NIGHT: HEAVEN’S FEEL> Photographer: RED

PHOTO GALLERY 8ยบ

Cosplayer: SHINIGAMI RIN/ IRACHAN Country: BULGARIA

Character: GRELL SUTCLIFF <KUROSHITSUJI> Photographer: PLAMENA KOEVA CQ MAGAZINE 33

PHOTO GALLERY 7º

Cosplayer: LUIS LÓPEZ / ANDREY RAMÍREZ Country: COSTA RICA 34 CQ MAGAZINE

Character: WARGREYMON Y TAI <DIGIMON ADVENTURE> Photographer: GABRIEL JIMÉNEZ

PHOTO GALLERY 6ยบ

Cosplayer: CAITY BAIR Country: CANADA

Character: RANKA LEE <MACROSS FRONTIER> Photographer: SETH-THOMAS TATE CQ MAGAZINE 35

PHOTO GALLERY 5ยบ

Cosplayer: FLAME R Country: BELARUS 36 CQ MAGAZINE

Character: MICHIRU KAIOH <SAILOR MOON (ART)> Photographer: KSENIYA LUCHKOVA

PHOTO GALLERY 4ยบ

Cosplayer: VANI Country: VIETNAM

Character: LORD SHEN <KUNG FU PANDA 2> Photographer: KATE HOร NG CQ MAGAZINE 37

PHOTO GALLERY 3ยบ

Cosplayers: CVY ELLIPSIS / LENNETH XVII / GK REIKO Country: SINGAPORE

38 CQ MAGAZINE

Characters: HATSUNE MIKU (AGITATION),

KAITO (GENERAL)

KAGAMINE LEN (BADBOY)

<VOCALOID 2> Photographer: NIK YAN

2ยบ

PHOTO GALLERY

Cosplayer: (MMMC) IKE’S COSPLAY Country: THE NETHERLANDS

Character: BROTHER PETROS <TRINITY BLOOD> Photographer: SAKS PHOTOGRAPHY

CQ MAGAZINE 39

PHOTO GALLERY

1ยบ

Cosplayer: ANGEL AYANAMI Country: PHILIPPINES 40 CQ MAGAZINE

Character: SCHNEEWITCHEN <SOUND HORIZON: MARCHEN> Photographer: KIRA HOKUTEN

PHOTO GALLERY

CQ MAGAZINE 41

ACHIEVEMENT UNLOCKED Gamer section with opinions, news and more!

D AV I D < F R A N C E >

Greetings Gamers!

In this issue we’d like to introduce David Schuster, a fellow gamer who lives in France.

He has experience in various types of games and consoles and this time we will review the known gamer platform “STEAM”. We hope you enjoy this review!

L A M P Y. C O M

of up to 80 % and many times they include packages with DLC’s (Downloadable Content), all the games of one particular franchise or even better, copies you can give to your friends and play online. Even if you live in a country without seasons, sometimes is better to save your money for the summer sales, the Black Friday or the winter sales, you’ll thank me later.

My Experience: • Borderlands Game of the Year Edition: $5 • Darksiders 1 and 2 with all the DLC’s: $14 • Bioshock: $5 • Batman Arkham City: $10 team is a digital distribution platform of • Max Payne 3: $7 videogames for the PC, developed by Valve Corporation in 2003 and it has become very The cons: For games that have just come popular among PC gamers. This service allows out, you’ll have to wait a long time for a price users to get games at good prices and in a reduction or for it to be included in the sales. completely legal way. But like everything, it has its pros and cons.

Support to indie games

S

Prices In my opinion, the most appealing side of Steam are the prices. If you are a savvy of the gamer world, you’ll know that the PC games are usually 10 dollars cheaper than the games for consoles, and this applies also to Steam. However, if what S TO R E . S T E A M P O W E R E D . C O M you want are real bargains, the best is to wait for the sales.

Steam has always showed its support to indie games developers, who benefit through a Sales relatively new option called Greenlight. This allows developers to upload demos or betas Steam’s sales have become a major event among of their games, which can be downloaded for PC gamers. Every weekend and occasionally free by the users, who then can score them. during the week, Steam launches sales of games According to this score, the game can become of any genre. These sales can have a discount available in Steam’s official store. In addition, 42 CQ MAGAZINE

ACHIEVEMENT UNLOCKED Big Picture

International Interview

this not only applies to videogames, but also to software.

Digital Format

F L AT PA N E L S H D . C O M

Comparison with Origin

Metronome Tips & Tricks

For those of you who like to play in the living room instead of sitting in front of the PC, Steam recently launched an option called Big Picture, in which you can connect your PC to a HD TV using a HDMI cable to play your favorite games. It has a completely different interface especially designed for TV and you need to have a PC compatible controller, just as if you had a console.

Next Stop

The cons: The traditional gamers, the fans of the collections and people who like to have their games sorted into their shelves can see the digital format as an inconvenient. On the other hand, you need to have an Internet connection fast enough to download the today’s 8 and 30 GB games, although I have to admit that Steam’s servers are incredibly fast!

Get to Know...

Personally, I find it very practical to download games in digital format. Once purchased, you’ll have the games linked to your account and you can play them from any PC. No more scratched discs and cases cluttering your room.

CQ Interview K U R N I K O F F. C O M

The cons: All the games distributed by EA for PC are exclusive of Origin (like Mass Effect, Dragon Age, FIFA series, etc…)

How many of our readers have used the Steam platform? You are welcome to tell us your experiences on our facebook page!

CQ MAGAZINE 43

Random Question

We all have a little gamer inside that wants to be legal, but being honest with ourselves, it’s not always easy. Steam with its sales makes it no just easy but WIRED.COM logic to buy legally. If you have doubts about the quality of the game, there are many demos available to see if your computer has the minimum requirements. For those of you who still have doubts, just wait until all The Witcher saga has a 70% discount.

Achievement Correspondent Unlocked

Legal

Photo Gallery

D E S T R U C TO I D . C O M

For those of you who don’t know it, Origin is a platform launched by Electronic Arts to compete with Steam in the market of videogames in digital format. Personally, I prefer Steam because Origin does not have any of the features mentioned in this article, like the support to indie games and the big amount of sales; things that make Steam to stand out and that make it a favorite.

CORRESPONDENT Interviews and news from our collaborators from another cities and countries Again we have the pleasure to present Kiren Lidell as our collaborator. Social networks such as Twitter, Tumblr and Facebook have affected on how we see our environment and how we see ourselves.

This reality has reached the cosplayers in different ways and sometimes, unfortunately, negative.

shoots for another time other than the event itself.

A couple of years later, a cosplayer had to do more than to just dress up as their favorite character.

Now they had to enter -and win- as much cosplay contests as possible. If you made your costume yourself, you would get more credit and recognition.

Later on, it wasn’t all about contests, but about the quantity of costumes you were able to produce or display at events. I mean, the audience couldn’t see you wearing the same costume twice! What a KIREN LIDELL <MEXICO> scandal! The wallet had to bleed to avoid such a catastrophe and keep the list of costumes going.

After all, you needed to do more characters from he value of the cosplayer different series -better if they’re popular- to appeal (Or how social networks have changed the cosplay scene) to the fans so they would like you more. Besides, you need to create more material for your personal “What makes a cosplayer better than another?” page or blog, right?

There are a lot of opinions around this question and it’s always a trigger for debate between Now we pass to the moment of the social network cosplay fans and cosplayers alike. What makes us boom. Now it’s all about likes on Facebook or prefer a cosplayer above another? Is it their fame, followers on Twitter. This is what makes a cosplayer the quantity of costumes they’ve made so far, their attractiveness or cuteness, or is it because they portrait characters from the series we like? And what about the current cosplay community? It has gone through a lot of changes, but are they for better or for worse? Here’s a small analysis based on my experience.

T

When cosplay was becoming popular at the beginning of 2000, what mattered the most was to pay tribute to your favorite character, by any means.

It didn’t matter if you couldn’t get a wig; having the costume was enough, and if you added a prop you’d increase the wow factor to your costume.

Contact lenses were for the perfectionists or those who could afford them.

Most of the photos you could find online were taken at conventions or in locations nearby. You were lucky if there was a photographer with a nice set, as it wasn’t that common to organize photo44 CQ MAGAZINE

CORRESPONDENT International Interview Get to Know...

Next Stop Metronome Tips & Tricks Random Question

CQ MAGAZINE 45

Achievement Correspondent Unlocked

Now we have more drama than before, why? Daily life has so much drama already, why adding more, especially if the idea of cosplay is to have fun?

Why hate and envy your fellow cosplayers when you could become friends with someone with the same tastes as you? In my opinion, seeing every cosplayer as a competition or as someone to badmouth to your heart’s content is plain ridiculous.

Respect others just as you want to be respected, is it that hard to do? I don’t think so.

Photo Gallery

Don’t get me wrong, I’m not against skimpy costumes at all. In fact, it’s good to see there’s people who feel comfortable with their bodies and aren’t ashamed of their preferences. The problem comes when they abuse and want to sexify everything, from “their own sexy version” of characters that aren’t sexy at all to very provocative poses when there’s no need... But hey! Anything to get more likes!

A lot of cosplayers out there get discouraged just by seeing their numbers on Facebook and wonder what they can do to increase them, which brings insecurities and negative thoughts that weren’t there before. Do you remember how things were before Facebook? Maybe you were on DeviantArt waiting for many pageviews, favorites and comments from other users. Or maybe you were in Cosplay.com, where all you wanted was to upload pictures of your costumes so everyone knew you were a cosplayer too, that you belonged to this community!

CQ Interview

“more valuable” nowadays and it’s what most of the cosplayers aspire to: getting all the numbers they can; after all, that’s what people see first, isn’t it? The bigger the number, the more valuable -or famous- the cosplayer is. People can’t be wrong on this, right? So, how do you get such numbers?

Well, you need to keep your pages up to date and produce interesting material to get the public’s attention. But sometimes, cosplayers are prone to expose themselves more than others because it’s well known that “sex sells”. They feel the need to make sexy or skimpy costumes to get more attention... and likes.

RANDOM QUESTION

Learn a little more about cosplay and what it represents for many young people in the world; the activities and opinions that help us carry out this colorful and cheerful hobby

Every hobby has some experiences, some bad and other are great. What is the best part of doing cosplay?

What has brought to your life?

T

Gokai-Wizard <El Salvador>

he best thing cosplay has brought me is confidence in myself.

Knowing I can stand on a stage representing a character in front of many people gives me confidence to do whatever I want. It is also how I met my girlfriend.

T

he best part of doing cosplay, in my opinion, is to do it with friends! Watching how simple materials become something beautiful and special gives me a great satisfaction! I enjoy to create a costume more than I like to wear it!

ArtemisBerry <Italy>

My skills in fashion design and dressmaking increased, as well as my experience, which brings me more work. It’s something I love and I do not set aside; I love being in front of the machine and creating thousand of things. I would hate to live my life in front of a computer or next to a phone solving other people’s problems (no offense, but I’m terrible at that). I applaud those who enjoy their jobs and the patience this implies.

Photo enthusiasts get better every day. I have seen cases where people pass from being amateurs to professionals. People who like to perform can also develop their creative side; remember, cosplay is not just about using a cute outfit. The stylists and makeup artists shine through cosplay, as well as designers, dancers, models, fencing amateurs and other martial arts students. There is video editing, music, props, replicas, weapons...There are thousand of things we can develop in a simple project like this! I see myself as a child with his legos when I get to create something new; there is always something to learn and this is a fun learning experience.

For all the people who criticize this hobby without trying it, think again. I don’t mean that everyone has to practice it to know they are, but perhaps sometimes it takes to represent a character you like to find your true calling.

46 CQ MAGAZINE

Tenshi no Sekai <Costa Rica>

RANDOM QUESTION

T

wo things: first, it gave me the possibility to discover my vocation as a costume designer and second, it gave me the opportunity to meet people from all over the world who share the same passion for cosplay as me.

Random Question

CQ MAGAZINE 47

Achievement Correspondent Unlocked

Daniratoe <Ecuador>

It also has put my creativity into practice. My hands are always moving and I always want to do something: knitting, drawing, playing the piano or anything else, and Cosplay allows me to do tons of crafts and to be always searching for ways to do stuff.

Cosplay teaches me to always find creative solutions! Within the hobby itself, cosplay helped me meet many people who have more experience in this and that have helped me learn more about how to make my costumes. They are good friends with whom I share a common interest in a healthy way. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s very, very fun!

Photo Gallery

Personally, cosplay has taught me to save money. Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m always looking for materials, so I have to know how to get them at the lowest price in order to make the costumes. This gave me the opportunity to recycle a dress (with which I made the cosplay of Athena) instead of buying yards of fabric to make a completely new one. You can recycle the clothes you no longer use!

CQ Interview

I

think cosplay gives a lot of us a new purpose in life, a choice to make decisions on our own, a chance to create something extraordinary, learning how to solve problems and make friends. It has given me a creative outlet, a venue for me to express myself and to be heard.

Metronome Tips & Tricks

Ana <Argentina>

Next Stop

Kaika <Singapore>

Get to Know...

Melfina <USA>

International Interview

F

or me, the best part of cosplay is to bring a character to life! I love the feeling of wearing a costume for the first time and knowing that it started out as just some yards of fabric or other materials. Also, getting together with friends or other cosplayers really makes the experience even more enjoyable. Cosplaying as an individual can be great, but having someone join you (or a group) is just such a richer experience.

SUPERHEROES <MARVEL & DC> C O S P L AY E R S Q U I T O P HOTO BY L O S T R E F L E C T IO N S

Contact and Info

cosplayersquito@gmail.com www.facebook.com/cosplayersquito