How to Organise a Cosplay Contest

Who says you can only dress up on Halloween? If Batman really matches your spirit, and you just can’t bear to keep him in the closet the whole year round, cosplay contests could be your thing.

For event planners, competitions that are based on dressing up are the perfect opportunity to let the imagination soar. Pop culture decorations, thematic catering, hundreds of movies and comic books to inspire ideas for onsite activities…you name it. Wooh! Seems like it’s hard to spoil the party, right?

Well, if you have some experience behind you, you know that no event journey is ever that easy. Just recently, a sexual harassment scandal broke at FanX Salt Lake Comic Convention, followed by the illegal disclosure of private email correspondence on Twitter. The development of regulations on permitted accessories, toy weapons, and costumes is another thing that can potentially cause trouble.

In this blog post, we’ve collected a few working ideas on how to run a cosplay contest without breaking any rules.

What is a cosplay contest?

Any competition that is based on the practice of dressing up can be called a cosplay contest. The participants are normally free to choose any character from a movie, cartoon, or book they want to represent. But because Japan is clearly the motherland of cosplay contests, Japanese genres are usually all the rage.

With comics being an important part of pop culture across the world, the hype around events like Comic-Con and Zappcon is insane. Comic-Con International – a legendary comics conference that was born in San Diego – will soon be entering its 50th year. The platform also plays host to a range of contests like the Eisner Awards and the Inkpot Awards, which celebrate individual contributions to the art of comics.

Why you should run a cosplay contest

About 2% of adult millennials read comic books on a regular basis, not to mention those who watch Marvel movies from time to time or purchase popular comics journals. As an event planner, you can’t ignore the hype. The beautiful thing about organizing a cosplay contest is that you already have thousands of ready-to-use stories and characters that can be woven into a creative competition idea. Here are just a few of the fascinating tasks you can come up with:

• Create a new comic character along with a creative backstory.
• Design a creative costume on the ground using a picture as a reference.
• Compete in an onsite gaming contest (e.g., Zappcon’s Gamemaster).
• Comics writers can apply for a range of nominations: “Best Short Story,” “Best Single Issue,” “Best New Series,” etc. (e.g., Eisner Awards).

How to organise a cosplay contest step by step

An awesome idea is nothing without good packaging, which is detailed rules and regulations. We’ve prepared a short cosplay contest guide that will help you nail the organisational aspects.

Set the goals and requirements

You need contest KPIs. Even if it’s “fun for the sake of fun” type of competition, well-defined objectives will help you make it perfect. The goals will vary, depending on the idea. If it’s an online contest, you’ll need to focus on the automation of submission processes like file uploads, transcoding, and more. For awards ceremonies, onsite engagement should be the prime focus.

Once your goals have been defined, start working on your crystal-clear participation requirements. Because cosplay contests usually involve dressing up, ensure you have a separate section dedicated to costume rules, which could cover the following:

• Genres: Specify the genres that are allowed in the framework of the given contest theme.
• Nudity: You don’t want your contestants to be arrested at the event. Neither do your guests want to feel awkward in the company of other people. A well-defined policy on how much nudity is allowed will protect you from falling into a trap.
• Conduct: To provide the most authentic character portrayal, cosplayers might want to behave like their characters. The question is whether any behavior is acceptable at your ceremony. If you don’t want any screaming and shouting or obscene gestures towards other contestants, define the rules for acceptable conduct beforehand.

Pick a resonating venue

Cosplay contest organisers usually have two venue options: they either search for a stand-alone venue or, if it’s part of a larger conference, choose a strategic spot within the given space.

Since costume celebrations can be quite noisy, pick an area that you can soundproof easily. Make sure you can accommodate the expected number of contestants (as well as their fabulous costumes); and if space is limited, the number of registrations should be limited as well.

Choose a theme

To avoid chaos, we recommend picking one specific theme that would give your cosplay event a solid shape and tone. For instance, for the upcoming Metrocon contest in Florida, the organisers opted for a Guardians vs Invaders theme, the concept of which is described in detail here.

Attract sponsors

Decorations and thematic activities can be quite expensive. To gain some extra funding, you could go on a hunt for sponsors – ideally, someone related to pop culture, costume suppliers, or publishers. Look into your event agenda and decide what you could provide in exchange for a sponsorship. From banner placement to cooperation in terms of costume supplying, there’s always value behind a partnership.

Set up the judging process

Whether it’s a board of comics experts or just random users voting for the best costumes, they need evaluation criteria. The possible criteria for judging a cosplay contest are visual design, originality of concept, humor, and commercial appeal. It’s a good idea to provide short explanations of all criteria to ensure that both entrants and judges understand what they actually mean.

If you want to use judging management software, focus on tools that enable multiple voting streams, personalized notifications, or any other solutions that will simplify your workload.

Here you can find a great example of contest regulations for an international cosplay competition within the Otaku Festival.

Conclusion

It’s not just trading fairs and business meetings that require detailed planning. Contests for dressing up can be challenging as well. These simple cosplay evaluation contest tips and contest voting management should help you create an experience that your audience desires, whether it’s a memorable party for comic fans or a recognition ceremony.