By definition, shapeshifting is the ability to change into a different shape or form. Amelia shares their experience as a Cosplayer and how it has empowered them!
Written by Zaira Sabado | Photos courtesy of @bearfangs on Instagram
Breaking the silence in the studio was the sound of wheels rolling across the floor. In comes Sophie Amelia, 19, with a large suitcase and various bags.
Discovery
Confident. Articulate. Lilting. Amelia, a year 3 Communications and Media Management student, flowed with ease as they shared about the past five years they have dedicated to cosplaying.
Amelia’s first encounter with cosplay was in 2017 through a video of a cosplay performance at an overseas convention. The performance piqued their interest and they found themselves drawn to the art.
“The whole concept of dressing up as characters and performing was really cool,” they shared, “I don’t think I’ve ever been drawn to anything else as much as cosplay.”
Embodying Different Characters
Through cosplaying, Amelia gained confidence in themselves and picked up loads of different skills like makeup and wig-styling.
Their favourite cosplays include Hu Tao from Genshin Impact, Uki Violeta from NijisanjiEN, and Kochou Shinobu from Demon Slayer.
New Experiences
Amelia shares that this year they mustered up the confidence to venture out and cosplay
male characters. When events slowly started to come back, they got the idea to give cosplaying a male character — Zhongli from Genshin Impact — a shot.
“I had the cosplay sitting in my room for the past six months, and thought I should give it a shot,” they mused, “It’s 2022, so I wanted to try new things!”
Embodying a male character and making their features appear more masculine was a first for Amelia and they were unsure of the feedback that they would receive.
Thankfully, the experience and feedback they received at the event was really positive withmany casual event-goers dousing them with compliments. The cosplayer shared that they were surprised by the reception, considering it was their first ever male cosplay.
They shared that their Zhongli cosplay has grown to become one of their proudest attempts thus far. “It was a really big highlight of my cosplaying experience and it gave me the confidence to go out and cosplay more male characters!”
The Community
While the cosplay community has been growing steadily from 2011, the hobby gained even more traction during the pandemic, with TikTok being a big contributor. Amelia was one of the trailblazers for posting cosplay content on TikTok and has garnered over 9000 followers on their page (@sakurapopz) over the past three years.
Amelia mused that events have gotten livelier with new people to meet and new experiences. “Now that cosplay is becoming more mainstream, the number of events have doubled,” they added with a laugh.
“There’s a lot of opportunities to meet new people, be it cosplayers or people who are boothing. Events are also becoming more lively!”
Stereotypes And Misconceptions
When asked about stereotypes they have faced, Amelia shares that whenever they plan to cosplay a new character, they face concern from their parents and peers about whether they’re venturing into something that’s 18+ or racy or revealing.
They elaborated, mentioning that a general public opinion about cosplaying is that most outfits are very racy – which is far from the truth.
“A lot of young people get into cosplay to be able to embody characters that they love and it doesn’t have anything to do with showing skin or promoting yourself in a way that’s considered inappropriate,” Amelia explained.
With the rise in popularity of anime and video game franchises in Singapore such as Jujutsu Kaisen and Genshin Impact, more people are getting exposed to it and are shifting their views.
“I think it’s a good thing that the public’s perspective is slowly changing but there are still people who are concerned about that,” they said with a sigh. “It could be out of concern, but I feel that it’s a stereotype that still needs to be changed.”