Cosplay Poses

Cosplay is about showing off a character while in costume, and this is something that's undeniable. Whether on a stage or in the street, cosplayers are practically demanded to be their chosen characters in their actions, and that includes poses when photographed or even in stage appearances recorded as movies. Even in my Pokémon cosplay this becomes important as Ash or Red have their own distinct styles and actions that can potentially be abstracted as poses to be utilized in these situations.

Some considerations are in order. Many characters are often shown in a still image and in a particular way, so these would serve as reference "poses" for their characters. It would be obvious to try to mimic or enact these poses, yet it wouldn't necessarily be a trivial matter if the poses are actually uncomfortable or too restrictive to do so. On the other hand, many characters are also animated, so it would be possible, at least theoretically, to infer poses from their animated sequences that can be replicated, with or without a lot of effort. Some effort is still required, of course.

In regard to my Pokémon cosplay, I feel that I've done quite a bit of both. I've memorized as many of Ash's (or Red's) poses as possible and enacted them, which has worked out well, and I've also inferred possible poses from action sequences and enacted those as well. The only problem is that sometimes it's hard for me to decide which one to use if I'm about to be or being photographed, especially if suddenly requested to do so. Moreover, I'm more often than not holding Pikachu with one of my hands since it's not motile. It's kind of both a personal problem and an environmental constraint problem. Sometimes things work out after I see the results, and sometimes they don't. Meanwhile on stage, I just let things happen according to my routine, since I rarely see the results anyhow, though this is very much desirable.

A friend told me that cosplay very much involves elements of theater, and I concur. I would also add that it's a highly visible form of theater, being not only done on stage and recorded in motion, but also done off the stage in various places and recorded as still images (that is, photographs). Poses seem to be crucial in regard of the latter, to capture the feel of the characters being cosplayed. I say it's very much applicable to my Pokémon cosplay as well, and it's something I have to take into account, whether or not things work out in the end result.

One year ago: Cosplay: Japanese World 2017