KOSUPURE: UNDERSTANDING ITS MEANING AND NATURE Michelle Angela E. Gabion M.A. Ed. Social Studies Prof. Jason Cocjin Instructor, Social Institutions and Group Interaction October 2014 Kosupure: Understanding its Meaning and Nature 2 Chapter I Introduction Media and entertainment, a newly identified social institution is one of the most influential among the youths and young adults today. It has been invading our society with rapid changes since the beginning of the 21st century. Most of it causes great influence on people and would likely to create such new trends and effects. One of the most trending forms of entertainment is cosplay. This form of entertainment is widely known all over the world. Every year, it is one of the most anticipated events by children, teenagers and those who are young at heart for it is their chance to meet their favorite characters come to life. Background of the Study Since the creation of media, people have been finding ways to create shows and express themselves in so many different ways. Some would even try to think of different strategies to show or freely express themselves and that also includes influencing others by means of entertainment. Aside from that, they could use media to socialize with other people. One example of entertainment is cosplay. The origin of the word cosplay or costume play was first coined by Nobuyuki Takahashi of Studio Hard while he was attending the 1984 World Science Fiction Convention (Worldcon) in Los Angeles, California. He combined two Japanese words “costume” ( コス ) and “play” ( プレ ) (Jee, 2010). Kosupure: Understanding its Meaning and Nature 3 One could easily be familiarize with the term cosplay since that sub- culture is already growing and been known for years already. The cosplay became widely known here in the Philippines after Myrtle Sarrosa, a cosplayer, was identified as the Pinoy Big Brother Teen Edition Season 4 Big Winner (Sarrosa, 2010). Most of the people would define cosplay as costume playing of a character. So what does cosplay really means and how can it influence people to join the growing number of members in the cosplay community? To further understand the meaning and nature of cosplay, I, the researcher attempt to put up the following objectives: a. To know the definition of the term cosplay in a cosplayer‟s point of view; b. To find out what/who influenced the cosplayers in joining the cosplay community; c. To know the reason why they cosplay; d. To know how cosplayers prepare in an event; and e. To determine what they have learned and how cosplay helped them as a person whether they are a student or are already a professional. Significance on the study The primary reason on why cosplay is the main subject of my research paper is to let the readers fully understand the nature of cosplay based on the definition and knowledge of the cosplayers themselves. Kosupure: Understanding its Meaning and Nature 4 Scope and Delimitations of the Study This research focuses on the nature of cosplay adopted by the Filipinos, regardless of gender and age. Using the survey method (questionnaire and a one-on- one interview) the respondents who were chosen through snow ball sampling technique, will define the meaning of cosplay and explain its nature based on their own knowledge and experiences as cosplayers. In this research, it does not attempt to look on the socio and economic status of the individual who does cosplaying; but rather on the entertainment, social interaction, and the psychological impact on the individual. As a whole, this study focuses and limits only on cosplaying, the definition of the term cosplay, the preparations made by the cosplayers, the reasons for cosplaying and how they were influenced by it, the lessons they have learned and the benefits they have gained while cosplaying. Review of Related Literature In this chapter, the main focus is to explain the history of cosplay and that would also include the common types of cosplayers and a short profile of some famous cosplayers around the world. The History of Cosplay Cosplay has been very popular among the teenagers and young adults all over the world. Cosplay conventions are being held every year and are participated by Kosupure: Understanding its Meaning and Nature 5 both cosplay enthusiast and cosplay fans. But how did cosplay or costume wearing started? Who are the people behind the beginning of this phenomenom? First of all, cosplay did not start in Japan and is not an original concept of the Japanese. The actual word "cosplay" was invented by a Japanese reporter, yes, but that is the extent of Japanese involvement in the creation of the hobby. In 1984, Nobuyuki Takahashi was sent to report on the goings-on of the '84 WorldCon, being held that year in Los Angeles, CA. He coined the word "cosplay" to describe what he saw going on at WorldCon – people wearing costumes in the halls, and a stage masquerade featuring the biggest and brightest of the costumes of the weekend. In Japanese linguistics, they often form composite words ("portmanteau") out of loanwords from other languages, such as English; in this case, he took "costume" and "play" and smashed them together to try to describe what he was seeing at WorldCon. What is important to note is that while we can only speculate on what he meant by "play," what is almost certain is that he did not necessarily refer to "acting," since the only stage performing at WorldCon is the masquerade, in which performances did not necessarily involve spoken dialogue. In fact, many of them that year didn't. More importantly, the sort of costumes and costume-wearing habits and traditions viewed at WorldCon in the early 80's were the culmination of literally decades of convention traditions. The creation of costume, the genres and styles of costume, and the times and places for proper wearing of costume had all been well-established by that time via science fiction conventions across the country. The state of costuming and costume- wearing habits evolves very little among those sci-fi conventions, so even though it has Kosupure: Understanding its Meaning and Nature 6 been over 30 years since that infamous WorldCon, one can look at fan and costumer behavior at any mid-size regional sci-fi con still running today and discern what Takahashi probably saw. This includes the masquerade, which is often a convention's crowning point of Saturday evening entertainment; media recreations regardless of the media source, and daily hall costuming (Feldmann, 2010). It is not hyperbole to say that hall costuming has been going on for decades, longer than many of today's anime-convention fans have been alive. The first documented hall costume was worn by Forry Ackerman in 1939, at WorldCon held in New York. Early WorldCons and other small sci-fi conventions were primarily attended by young men only, and revolved around the discussion and distribution of science fiction anthologies and periodicals. (Feldmann, 2010). Because little existed in the way of "media" besides literature, those early costumes were likely to be informal and original or generic design. Women were either not admitted or not often seen at sci-fi expos until sometime in the 40's. Among these expos, the biggest and most influential for the longest time was WorldCon, because it changes location annually and is billed as a world meeting of sci-fi buffs. In the modern era, there are many conventions that haul in annual attendance rates triple that of any given WorldCon, but it is so firmly entrenched as the longest-running convention in the world and the mother of all sci-fi conventions - and by extension, the mother of all anime, gaming, literature, and other genre media cons. Thus, trends established at WorldCon and the host conventions that carried it through the 1940's, 50's, and 60's are the ones that should be understood as the origins of hobby costuming. Over time, Kosupure: Understanding its Meaning and Nature 7 with the proliferation of science fiction and horror themes in movies and the heyday of superhero comic books, recreations of popular media characters began to creep into both hall costuming and stage masquerade costumes. This includes anime, as there were nerds getting their hands on "Japanimation" in the late 60's and early 70's. It is suggested that Karen Dick might have done the first anime costume in the US, when she put together costumes from Captain Harlock for the halls in the late 1970's, and then entered a Starship Yamato group at WorldCon and other west-coast conventions in 1980. That group went on to win Best in Show regionally, the first anime costumes to be awarded the highest honor in a masquerade, four years before Takahashi even heard of WorldCon. (Feldmann, 2010). What is still unknown is how soon after the '84 WorldCon and Takahashi's article that the Japanese actually began to make costumes and display them at local conventions. Also unknown is whether the first Japanese person to actually don a media recreation costume was wearing something of Japanese origin, or instead copied the Americans to the point of making a Spider-man or Han Solo costume first. Because these two crucial things are unknown and undocumented, no one can make a claim that the Japanese originated cosplay as we know it today. One thing, however, is certain: the concept of creating and wearing a costume of a character from a media source was not in any way originated by anyone of Japanese nationality. No one in Japan can claim to have invented or started cosplay, no matter how popular a phenomenon it might have become in the present day over there. There are some who might use the term to describe solely costumes originating from a Japanese media Kosupure: Understanding its Meaning and Nature 8 source (anime, manga, or video game), but even then, without proof that a Japanese person in Japan created a costume of a Japanese media character prior to anyone in America doing the same, "cosplay" under the narrow definition still cannot be claimed by the Japanese. In fact, since Karen Dick was making and displaying Harlock costumes in 1979, she has Takahashi's audience beat by five years (Feldmann, 2010). Different Types of Cosplayers In a cosplay convention, one would be very amazed to see a great number of cosplayers roaming around the event area. You will not only see characters from movies but also those who are from Marvel, CAPCOM, fairy tales, anime, books, etc. There are six common types of cosplayers according to Cairdiuil in her blog entitled “Types of Cosplayers” (Cardiuil, 2011) and on a Youtube video entitled “The 6 different types of cosplay!” (Tala, 2011): Usual or Regular Cosplayers These are persons who‟s cosplaying or dressing up a regular character they love and enjoy and do that character for self expression or pure fandom. Fig. 1 Fig. 2 Gintama Gintoki cosplay Kosupure: Understanding its Meaning and Nature 9 Crossplayers These are people who cosplay as characters of the opposite sex. Female cosplaying male characters or male cosplaying female characters. Fig. 3 Fig. 4 Uzumaki Naruto crossplay Mecha These are people who cosplay robots or armored characters. Fig. 5 Fig. 6 Iron Man Cosplay Gender-swap or genderbend This is a type of cosplayer who put a twist or spins on a character. They make a guy character into a girl character or a girl character into a guy character. Fig. 7 Fig. 8 Edogawa Conan cosplay Kosupure: Understanding its Meaning and Nature 10 Humanoid or anthropomorphism More commonly known as gijinka. Taking a non-human beings, objects, concepts, or phenomena and making it into a human character or form. Fig. 9 Fig. 10 Marill from Pokemon Original character These types of cosplayers who create their own characters in any style they want. Fig. 11 Fig. 12 Famous cosplayers around the world Here is a collection of profile of some famous female cosplayers around the world. Yuegene Fay (Thailand) Yuegene Fay is a famous Thailand cosplayer. She mostly does crossplay since her body built is that of a male and easy for her to manage male characters (Wong, 2013). Fig. 13 Kosupure: Understanding its Meaning and Nature 11 Yaya Han (America) Yaya Han is one of only few cosplayers in the world to build a business in this hobby-ist community, but even after a decade of success, she strives to stay true to what got her into this field originally - fun and creativity. To this day, Yaya has made a myriad of costumes in the genres of anime, manga, video games, sci-fi, comic books and of course from her own original designs. Her intricate and lavish creations have Fig. 14 won awards and acclaim worldwide, and she has been invited to appear as a Guest, Panelist, Judge, Performer and Host to over 100 conventions and other events all over the globe. Through hard work, unmatched passion and infectious enthusiasm, Yaya has helped cosplay gain respect and integrity as an artform in the fandom world and art communities, and her decade long campaign for creativity has helped raise Cosplay to the standards we know today. Everyday, Yaya continues to pave the path for the beloved art and lifestyle we know as Costume Play (Yaya Han, 2010). Kosupure: Understanding its Meaning and Nature 12 Vampy Bit Me (America) Heavily interested in fashion and the arts, Linda “Vampy Bit Me” Le learned to style in the States, and then went abroad to London and Japan to continue her studies. Upon arriving back in the States, she began to teach makeup and dabbled in modeling. Having made a splash in the cosplay scene with her depictions of classic anime and video game characters, she was discovered by Japanese Fig. 15 toy company Kotobukiya and was featured in the cosplay showcase book Otacool 2, which became a worldwide success. Eager for more creative outlets, she then teamed up with Long Vo, the artist on Super Street Fighter II Turbo HD Remix, to create images, artwork and a comic for Udon Entertainment‟s book, VENT. She is currently part of a costume/prop maker‟s group named Team Mantium Designs who builds and fabricates highly articulate armor. She continues to keep pushing for creative freedom in all mediums and loves to teach everyone she can about the Otaku lifestyle (Le, 2014). Kosupure: Understanding its Meaning and Nature 13 Reika (Japan) Reika usually cosplay male characters which gained her a lot of female fans. She garnered more fame after cosplaying Levi Rivai from Shingeki no Kyojin. She makes her own costumes as well as her make up with utmost details that made her as one of the famous and best cosplayers around the world (Reika, 2012). Fig. 16 Jesuke Jes (Singapore) Jesuke Jes first debuted her cosplaying last 2006 as Sasuke Uchiha from Naruto. After that, she gained a lot of fans due to her cosplay skills and cosplayed over 20 characters (both male and female). She has been joining cosplay convention from her hometown in Singapore, Korea and recently here in Iloilo City, Philippines. (Jesuke Jess, 2014) Fig. 17 Kosupure: Understanding its Meaning and Nature 14 Chapter II Methodology This chapter disserts what kind of method is used upon conducting the study. Under this method is the research design, locale of the study and units of analysis. Research Design The method used is the descriptive method wherein the qualitative approaches were applied to fulfill and satisfy the objectives of this research paper. Locale of the Study The research is conducted through the use of the internet and social media network (Facebook) due to the tight schedule of the respondents but there is an exemption from one respondent who had a one-on-one interview. Units of Analysis The respondents of this study are six cosplayers from Iloilo City and one from Bacolod City ages 16 to 26. The respondents were chosen through snow ball sampling technique. Kosupure: Understanding its Meaning and Nature 15 Chapter III Results In this chapter, an analysis of the data collected for the study is made and interpretations are made in order to draw conclusion of the study. When the respondents were asked on what‟s the meaning of the term cosplay based on their own point of view, their answers were the following. a. Self expression. It is the expression of your thoughts or feelings especially through artistic activities such as painting, writing, dancing, etc. (Merriam- Webster, 2014). “Cosplay is about self-expression, the ability to express one's enthusiasm and interest in a series/game he/she likes. It's about bringing your favorite character to life out of love and passion and not for selfish reasons.” ~Bea, 17 “Cosplay is a form of art or self expression…” ~Claudine, 19 b. Hobby. It is an activity done regularly in one‟s leisure time for pleasure (Oxford Dictionaries, 2014). “Cosplay is… a hobby very much like your painting, composing, writing and fishing and such.” ~Claudine, 19 Kosupure: Understanding its Meaning and Nature 16 “Cosplay is a hobby since I‟ve seen a lot of my cosplay friends doing it in a regular basis. Every time there is a cosplay convention, they would regularly attend it because I can see it in their faces that they are gaining pleasure from it.” ~Michelle, 26 c. Art. It is something that is created with imagination and skill and that is beautiful or that expresses important ideas or feelings. It is also defined as the conscious use of skill and creative imagination especially in the production of aesthetic objects (Merriam-Webster, 2014). “Cosplay is a form of art…” ~Claudine, 19 “It is a form of art because you do not only portray the character but you also show your skills in creating props and costume which is also considered an art.” ~Michelle, 26 d. Dressing up. It is to attire in clothes suited to a particular role (Merriam- Webster, 2014). “It is dressing up as a favourite character whether from games, anime, cartoon, comics etc. And being the character itself when you wore the costume~” ~Daphne, 24 Kosupure: Understanding its Meaning and Nature 17 “Cosplay Means "Costume Play" and is the practice of dressing up as a character from a movie, book, or video game, especially one from the Japanese genres of manga and anime.” ~Mackie, 16 The respondents were also asked on what or who influenced them to join the cosplay community and their common reasons are: themselves, celebrity cosplayers and their family, relatives and friends. a. Themselves “Well I can't afford life size character figure so I decided to dress up and be one. XD” ~Claudine, 19 “What influenced me is my love of anime back then.” ~Daphne, 24 “Me! Because I really wanted to see other cosplayers around the world.” ~Mackie, 16 Kosupure: Understanding its Meaning and Nature 18 b. Celebrity cosplayers “The main person that influenced me to join the cosplay community was the Thai cosplayer, Yuegene Fay. It was through her works that I was motivated to try and enter the hobby.” ~Bea, 17 “I remember Alodia hime featured cosplaying on a gamers site and I was like "whooaaa "shes so cool!! Yeah so basically she is my 1st Cosplay idol ohohoho..” ~Karasu, 20 c. Relatives/friends “…then later Cousin Kim open the doors of cosplaying.” ~Karasu, 20 “My cousin who‟s a fanatic of anime and games in the US influenced me into this hobby, also my love and passion as well on video games and anime.” ~Justine, 24 “It was my co-teacher‟s son who influenced me in cosplaying. Mam Fatima introduced me to him because she knew that I love anime like her son. After we met, he invited me to witness a cosplay event and introduced me to his friends who are also cosplayers.” ~Michelle, 26 Kosupure: Understanding its Meaning and Nature 19 When asked on the reasons why do they cosplay, the answers of the respondents were all similar to each other. “I cosplay for fun, for leisure, for the love of the fandom, for self- expression and most of all, for friendship. I believe that these are the key factors that most cosplayers state as the reason why they engage in the hobby. I personally believe that I continue to cosplay because I think about the fun and excitement to work on a new costume and to meet fellow cosplayers who will also share the same feeling as you do. I could care less for popularity, gaining friends who'll stay with you until the end is much more important.” ~Bea, 17 “Because I want to be a life size figure. Lol. Seriously. And I also want to be like the character I like most.” ~Claudine, 19 “I have many reasons why I cosplay. Here are some of my reasons why I cosplay. Cosplay is self-expression. It gives me the chance to showcase my talent with the related arts. It also gives me the chance to be my favourite character from the animes. Cosplaying also gives me the opportunity to meet new people with the same interest in one area, I mean you can find them all gathered around in one place during cons and events. And my favourite part in cosplaying, not only Kosupure: Understanding its Meaning and Nature 20 do I get to be my favourite character, I get to have different looks. With the power of make-up (plus costume and wigs) I get to play with myself, and sometimes surprise myself with how I would look like. It makes me diverse~” ~Daphne 24 “There are two things 1: develops my self confidence 2: I feel great!!!!” ~Karasu, 20 “It's fun! And it's a really great way to meet new people who like the same things you do. It's so challenging as well, getting designs, sewing the clothes, making props, etc. But it's worth the effort. A lot of people do it to show off their skills, others do it to show their love for certain shows, games, comics, etc. It's just something a lot of us find really enjoyable.” ~Mackie, 16 “I cosplay because I get to express my love and passion of the character I love and felt inspired.” ~Justine, 24 “I cosplay to portray my favourite character and to develop self confidence since I‟m a shy person when I‟m in a crowd. Also to gain new friends with the same interest as I have.” ~Michelle, 26 Kosupure: Understanding its Meaning and Nature 21 Based on the respondents‟ answers, I consider cosplay as a form of collective behavior. According to Ashley Crossman (2014), it is a type of social behavior that occurs in crowds or masses. Riots, mobs, mass hysteria, fads, fashions, rumor, and public opinion are all examples of collective behavior. It is argued that people tend to surrender their individuality and moral judgment in crowds and give in to the hypnotic powers of leaders who shape crowd behavior as they like. The most common examples of collective behavior made by the cosplayers are fashion and fads. You can use fashion to express yourself, to serve as an extension of your personality: goth, skater, soccer mom, professional (Nellis, 2014). The definition of a fad is something that people are interested in for a short period of time (YourDictionary, 2014). I also consider cosplay as a form of socialization. Socialization is the process whereby an individual learns to adjust to a group (or society) and behave in a manner approved by the group (or society). According to most social scientists, socialization essentially represents the whole process of learning throughout the life course and is a central influence on the behaviour, beliefs, and actions of adults as well as of children (Britannica, 2014). Another question given to the cosplayers is how they prepare in a cosplay event. What are the things that they should prepare before the big day? Most of the respondents have common answers. Kosupure: Understanding its Meaning and Nature 22 “Well, I would first find a series that I would love so much I would be motivated to cosplay someone from the series. I usually start off by picking the costume I want to do. Then I would start planning on what materials I want to have the costume made and where will I have it done. I dislike cramming and rushing my costumes as I want to give the best possible output I can have on all of my costumes. So I pick an event I want to attend and usually prepare 2 - 3 months before the event date. In preparation, I usually find all the pieces needed for my costume and order them ahead of time if they need to be shipped to me. As much as possible I also do my best to work on some pieces of my costume, such as minor props and accessories that I can craft myself.” ~Bea, 17 “I usually am the crammer type of cosplayer where I would make my costume 1 week or 3 days before the event and do my act on stage on the spot. Haha.” ~Claudine, 19 “Well if you ask for an “event” I would answer, just be ready, and pack everything you need. But if you mean how do I prepare myself with an upcoming event and planning on cosplaying. Well cosplaying is one of the most expensive hobbies. You really have to have money to be able to make props, costume and buying the essential things you Kosupure: Understanding its Meaning and Nature 23 have to need. You have to plan it long before finally deciding to cosplay a certain character.” ~Daphne, 24 “I always prepare a month before an event or some photoshoot but I actually make it 1 week before the event ahahha.... cramming overlord.” ~Karasu, 20 “Be prepared a week before the event and you need to prepare your costume and props and also your music when you‟re joining a contest.” ~Mackie, 16 “There are many ways to prepare for a cosplay event. One is to save. Saving money is critical because you don‟t know how much a full costume would be like materials, tailor labor, paint, make up set, props, etc. another is to budget your time. Time management is crucial in preparation to a cosplay event since you will never know when a certain piece or part of your costume is not yet ready. It pays to be prepared. Another is RESEARCH! Research on who your character is because as a cosplayer you need to know how your character moves, acts, talks and etc. but that doesn‟t mean that you have to go to extremes just to be your character. Like if your character smokes you need not to risk your health for that.” ~Justine, 24 Kosupure: Understanding its Meaning and Nature 24 “I usually choose the character I want to portray and study his/her personality. Then prepare the necessary stuffs like costume, props, accessories, etc. months before the event.” ~Michelle, 26 According to their answers, preparing in a cosplay event usually takes time and needed to be organized. The cosplayers are in a completer state of immersion in an activity. This kind of activity is known as flow. Flow is one of the major topics of interest in positive psychology (Cherry, 2014). Aside from the knowledge of the respondents regarding cosplay, I also asked them on how cosplay helped them as a person. Since my respondents are ages 16-26, the respondents are coming from the group of students and working/professional. Here are the answers of the respondents who are still students. Most of their answers show that being a cosplayer could give positive reinforcements in their studies. “As a person it definitely boosted my self-confidence. It actually helped me to love myself more and definitely made me realize the hidden talents that I actually possessed. As a student, it helped me with my time management and actually helped me acquire skills that I could use on my school projects and activities. It also motivated me and inspired me to do good in my studies. People often think that just Kosupure: Understanding its Meaning and Nature 25 because I cosplay I only think about the hobby, anime and don't have a care for my studies. In reality, I actually perform well in school with good grades to match.” ~Bea, 17 “As a student, cosplay helped me overcome my shyness and meet new fellow cosplayers and friends.” ~Mackie, 16 “Cosplaying helped me gain some friends despite being an Aspie. It also helped me gain some ideas and creative ways to make a project in school from the skills I've learned in making my costumes.” ~Claudine, 19 Cosplay do not only helped these young respondents but also those who are already working or professionals. Most of them were helped in boosting their self confidence and self esteem. “Cosplay helped me developed my social skills, before I used to be quiet and shy type of person, unsociable, doesn't talk to anyone.” ~Karasu, 20 “Cosplay gave me confidence and helps me build up my self esteem.” ~Daphne, 20 Kosupure: Understanding its Meaning and Nature 26 “Cosplaying helped me as a person in a way that it has helped me in increasing my self-esteem and even helped me in gaining new friends. As a professional it helped me in making me more organized in time and in being careful in paper works and contracts and organizing.” ~Justine, 24 “As a professional, it helped me build up my self confidence especially when dealing with people. It also helped me in broadening my knowledge in arts since cosplay itself is an art.” ~Michelle, 26 The respondents‟ answers supported the statements of Kendra Cherry, a psychology expert, regarding positive psychology. One major finding in positive psychology is that people are generally happy and while happiness is influenced by genetics, people can learn to be happier by developing optimism, gratitude, and altruism (Cherry, 2014). Cosplay develops optimism among the respondents because it helped them boost their self confidence and their creativity. The last question I gave to my respondent is, „What have you learned in cosplaying?‟ and each gave their answers in which most of them learned in being creative especially in crafts and in make-up. Kosupure: Understanding its Meaning and Nature 27 “What I learned is make-up skills and the art of making friends.” ~Daphne, 20 “I learned the value of time, effort, responsibility, sacrifice and friendship. Through this hobby it broadened my horizons and gave me experiences that not only helped me improve as an individual, but it also made me into a better person. It was through this hobby I realized that hard work is required in order to produce an amazing output and it is also through dedication that one can achieve higher heights.” ~Bea, 17 “Make-ups and wig styling (still practicing) XD and how to overcome your shyness in public.” ~Mackie, 16 “There are lots of things that I've learned from cosplay one is that I learn how to be more creative in my costume, another is to be innovative in making my props and such, also I learned how to managed my time and to make better and more mature decisions. Also is learning how to socialize more with people.” ~Justine, 24 “Ohhohohhoho make ups and detailing!!!” ~Karasu, 20 Kosupure: Understanding its Meaning and Nature 28 “I learned how to be more creative especially in doing crafts that would help me in my work. I also learned in socializing with other people since I‟m an introvert when I was a kid. It also helped me in realizing that as we age, we should learn how to fully enjoy life.” ~Michelle, 26 “I learned how to do make up and crafting and sewing. XD” ~Claudine, 19 Creativity is an ability to produce something new through imaginative skill, whether a new solution to a problem, a new method or device, or a new artistic object or form (Merriam-Webster, 2014). Summary and Conclusions In this study, I found out that cosplay is about self-expression, art, hobby and dressing up of any characters. That it could influence people in all types of ages whether you are studying or working. By cosplaying, you could develop your self confidence and artistic side. It discloses lots of your hidden skills, talents and abilities. It could also help you in being organized because cosplay requires time to prepare certain things like costume, props, music and research in the personality of the character you are cosplaying. Kosupure: Understanding its Meaning and Nature 29 Cosplay could also means a form of socialization wherein you could meet fellow cosplayers and form a group that shares the same passion as you are. You could develop your social skills through events. Recommendation I have generated some questions as recommendations for future researches in regards to cosplay. a. What does non-cosplayer thinks of cosplay? b. Are cosplayers considered as deviant in the society? c. What are the reactions of parents where their children are engaged in cosplaying? d. How can cosplay benefit a person in a society? e. How does cosplay cause a psychological impact on people who are not cosplaying? Kosupure: Understanding its Meaning and Nature 30 Chapter IV References Abdula, M. et. Al. (2014, February 10). 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