ReedPOP, who recently took over management of Emerald City Comic Con, has just announced the all new Western Championships of Cosplay taking place at ECCC this year (April 9, 2016).
ReedPOP has been putting on the Eastern Championships at NYCC and the Crown Championships at C2E2 in Chicago, so adding a Western Championships is the next logical step. This will be the first competition of the series for 2016, and the winner will automatically be qualified for the final round of the Crown Championships.
Each contestant can submit only one cosplay, and the cosplay must be submitted and registered by March 4th. The Rules and Application can be found on the ECCC website.
I’ve been anxiously awaiting this announcement and while I don’t think I’m going to really be competition for some of the amazing cosplayers out there, I plan to submit the cosplay I’m planning and to participate in the competition. I’ll be writing all about it as it unfolds!
There are four planned categories.
- Needlework – Cosplay constructed primarily through sewing, stitching, embroidery, etc.
- Armor – Cosplay constructed primarily by molding and shaping its outer layers using acrylic, EVA foam, Worbla, Wonderflex, cardboard, etc.
- FX – Cosplay that primarily features animatronics, optical effects, mechanical effects, special effects makeup, prosthetics, etc.
- Larger Than Life – Cosplay that encloses the maker and extends their limbs by at least one-foot in length.
Prizes will be awarded for each category.
First Place
- Two (2) VIP Tickets for C2E2 2017 (held in Chicago, USA)
- $1,500 Cash
- Airfare to Chicago for C2E2 2017
- Hotel for two (2) nights in Chicago for C2E2 2017
- Automatic entry into the Final Round of the Crown Championships of Cosplay at C2E2 2017
- Medal
Second Place
- Two (2) Special Access VIP Tickets for ECCC 2017
- $1,000 Cash
- Medal
Third Place
- Two (2) 4-Day Tickets for ECCC 2017
- $500 Cash
- Medal
LeeAnna Vamp is currently the only announced judge, but I imagine the other judges will be just as big in the cosplay scene.
I am pretty damn excited for my first cosplay competition. The only sour note to the whole thing is that group cosplay is not permitted and I was really hoping to do a father and son cosplay for the competition. We’ll still walk around in our cosplay together for the rest of the con, but I’m sad he won’t get to experience the competition.
You can read the full announcement here.
