South African cosplay is growing rapidly, with local cosplayers constantly refining their craftsmanship and skill levels – putting top local players on par with international cosplayers. rAge (the really Awesome gaming expo) strives to provide a fun and inclusive environment for cosplayers to both enjoy their hobby and to participate in highly competitive events that pave the way for the participants to compete internationally.
Cosplay – a contraction of “costume play” – is an increasingly popular and professional hobby where fans wear costumes and accessories to represent fictional characters. The term was coined in Japan, where the trend kicked off in the 1980s with people dressing up as video game characters. It has since grown globally, with fans recreating their favourite sci-fi, fantasy and comic book characters down to the finest details. Costumes are often planned and handmade months in advance of events.
To cater for this growing and dedicated market, the rAge Cosplay Contest is getting bigger and better each year, with more cosplayers than ever crafting their own costumes over any months, dressing up for the weekend’s event and taking part in the contest. With up to 100 cosplayers participating this year, visitors are promised a visual feast of all that is fantasy!
This year’s contest, hosted and organized by GES, and sponsored by NAG, will feature a new set of categories and divisions. Along with the Novice and Intermediate levels, a new Masters level has been added which will be judged separately. This particular level will have different and stricter judging criteria and no genre categories. The Masters level is only applicable to Individual Cosplay and Costume and Crafting entries, and no cosplayers who have placed or won at any other contests in the last year (1 October 2016 to 30 September 2017) may enter. This will make for stiffer competition for the competitors and great spectator value for rAge visitors.
The Masters level will encourage cosplayers to take their cosplay up a notch, with their planning and portfolio stage also being taken into consideration during the judging. Points will be awarded for the quality of the prep work, which will have to be handed in before the contest. There will be four prizes in total for the Masters division, with prizes awarded to the first and second place in both Individual Cosplay and Costume and Crafting.
The 2017 rAge Cosplay Contest will celebrate the best cosplayers in South Africa, giving them an opportunity to show off their skills and effort. Entries are open, with all the information posted on the Facebook Event page. Registrations will close on 25 September 2017.
For more information on the Rule Book for this contest you can go here.
If you missed last year’s Cosplay Contest at rAge, you can watch the highlights video.
