As I mentioned in my June Events post, the next cosplay event that concluded recently was Cosfest XIV - Under the Stars by the Singapore Cosplay Club, held on the 11th and 12th of July at D'Marquee in Downtown seen. Actually, there was another similar event held concurrently named ICExpo, which was like CharaExpo, also held for the first time in Singapore, but meh... Nobody told me about it, so I didn't go...
Anyway, this is all about Cosfest XIV, the longest running cosplay-themed event in Singapore, held for the FOURTEENTH time (Where have I been the past thirteen years?) in a permanent theatre. It was a pretty big event, with quite a number of cosplayers, quite possibly the largest number I have seen in any Anime convention (sans Anime Festival Asia). There were quite a number of booths, including one from ANI-NATION and Tomodachi Thailand, along with quite a large number of artbook and doushinji artists. The convention opened at 12pm, but the event only officially started at 2pm and ended at around 6pm on both days.
The first day was mostly about anisong performances by some contestants, and they would be judged by the Joysound system, which rates their accuracy, tone, harmony, passion (WTF), among other factors. There were other performances sprinkled in by guest performers, but to be honest, the first day was pretty subdued (apart from all the cosplayers), but it was pretty fun nonetheless. Although, it was obvious that the main event was going to be held on the second day.
The second day was the meat and potatoes of the event, with the numerous cosplay performances along with the World Cosplay Summit Singapore Qualifiers. There were also a sizable jump in the number of cosplayers, and it was well worth the visit. The performances kicked off with a performance by an entire troupe cosplaying as the nine members of Love Live!, followed by some notable ones including one of the most convincing impersonation of Nico Yazawa from Love Live in recent years.
The World Cosplay Summit was something of a downer, though. For the best cosplaying duos in Singapore, while their costumes were fairly well done, their performances left much to be desired. Furthermore, they went to cosplay some obscure characters from not-very-popular franchises such as Garo, Vampire Hunter D and Touken Ranbu. And yes, there were only three pairs, which really killed the excitement. Their performances also left much to be desired.
The cosplayers on the second day, though, did not disappoint. With a fabulous display of characters from every anime, there were no lack of cosplayers, and no lack of photos. So without further ado, let me just post all the photos I took for your enjoyment.
There were also some surprising announcements. A new cosplay event was announced, named Cosplay Sea - the Rising Tide, which will be a 4 Day 3 Night cruise! This is a relatively new frontier as far as cosplay events go, and I'm excited and the prospects this brings. Its currently set for the 8th to 11th of January next year, so there's less than half a year to go. There's only limited places, so better keep your eyes peeled for more news.
...Then on to August. There are a number of anime events scheduled for August as well, namely the International Cosplay Day and The EOY Cosplay Festival. There's also a Natsu Matsuri within, which while not an anime festival, its a fun event where you get to sample staple Japanese festival food and play some of their signature games which you see in anime. Looking forward to seeing you then!
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