Cos Play Contest Rules

Cos•Play Contest Rules

Fan Nexus’ primary Cos•Play Contest is held Saturday night of the Con.

(Subject to change)

It’s not just a COStume contest. It’s also PLAY. The goal is simple:

We want the participants to have a chance to show off their hard work, and we want to put on a great show for the audience.

Competitions:

There are two main competitions in the Cos•Play Contest: stage presentation & workmanship.

Workmanship:

- Costumers will be judged on their skill in the construction of their costume. Workmanship judging is optional, and will be done prior to the stage competition (during tech rehearsals).

Stage presentation:

- All entrants will have a stage presentation. Costumers will be judged on the effect of their costume as well as their stage performance. The performance judging will be during the main Cos•Play Contest show at 8PM on Saturday.

Eligibility:

1. All participants must have valid ticket for this Fan Nexus event.
2. Participants must read and follow all Fan Nexus Cos•PlayContest rules and regulations.
3. By registering for the Cos•PlayContest, all participants agree to allow Fan Nexus to use their images for promotional purposes, including all photographs and video.
4. A parental signature is required for participants under the age of 18.

How to Enter:

1. Participants may download an entry form from the Fan Nexus website or pick them up at the convention at the information desk.
2. Completed entries may be turned back in via email to Cos•PlayContest director before the convention, or at the convention at the information desk. All entries must be to the Cos•PlayContest director no later than 1PM Saturday… NO EXCEPTIONS!!
3. Please fill out and turn in a Photo Consent Form.
4. The total number of entries will be limited to 30, first come first serve, so enter early.

Skill Divisions:

The Cos•Play Contest will be run under the skill divisions systems of Junior, Novice, Journeyman, and Master. This prevents costumers with less experience from having to compete directly against those with more. For group entries, the division should be that of the highest ranking member of the group. Please ask the Cos•Play Contest Director for assistance in choosing a division if needed. You may be placed in another division at the discretions of the Cos•Play Contest director and/or the judges, depending on skill and number of entries in each division.

Tech Rehearsal:

●Attendance at the “Cos•Play Contest - Check In for Competitors” is mandatory. During this short meeting, you will be given your appearance number, and your tech rehearsal time slot

●Attendance at your Saturday afternoon tech rehearsal time slot is also mandatory.

Please BE ON TIME and come prepared to your Tech Rehearsal.

●During tech, the judges will examine your workmanship. This means you need to have your costume completely ready. If you are recreating another costume from another source (anime, book covers, movies, etc.) please bring a copy picture of the source image. Workmanship will be judged, not how well you look like the character physically.

●You will have a chance to work with the MC and prepare your stage performance. Makes sure you have figured out your general presentation BEFORE coming to the Tech.

Any interaction with the MC needs to be noted in the script you provide. If you want the MC to read a description of your costume, please write out exactly what you want the MC to read. A written pronunciation should be provided for any made-up or fantasy words.

Stage presentations are limited to TWO MINUTES onstage during the main Cos•Play Contest. If you exceed your time limit, the MC will likely cut you off.

●You will meet with the sound and lighting technician about any requirements. Pre-recorded audio must be provided on CD or as a file on a disc or jump drive. We will NOT be able to play audio off youtube, your phone, or your laptop.

●Depending on the number of entrants, we may have limited time to spend with each costumer. You can expect to have about 5-10 minutes at each station.

General Guidelines & Information:

1. Fan Nexus is a family friendly event. Content should not go beyond PG-13.

○No Offensive language of any kind will be tolerated.

○NO NUDITY – real or implied.

○Please use some discretion, as there are usually children in the audience.

1. Safety of the Cosplayers and the audience is our highest priority.

○No Pyrotechnics or projectiles of any kind.

○No live animals except service animals are permitted.

○No messy substances- wet, dry, or oily- that may damage another participant’s costume or event space including the stage.

○No jumping on or off the stage without prior approval by Cos•Play Contest Director. Use the official stage entrances and exits.

○No illegal weapons of any kind. No real weapon or metal edged weapon of any kind.

○All other weapons must be peace bonded and the participant must agree to adhere to Spokane Convention Center weapon policy. Peace bonding may be removed during contests upon approval by Cos•Play Contest Director.

○The Cos•Play Contest director has the right to deny performance requests due to safety concerns or building regulations.

1. All costumes with electric power need to be self-contained. There will be no access to electrical outlets on stage.
2. Purchased or rented costumes, may not compete for workmanship, but may be entered for stage presentation.
3. Costumes that have won Best in Show or Best in Class awards in a World Con, major Comic Con or a costume con may not compete for workmanship, but may be entered for stage presentation.
4. No costume that has been judged in a prior year for workmanship may be judged again without a significant change.

○Only the new change to the costume will be judged.

○Judges reserve the right to determine definition of “significant change”

1. All costumes must be finished prior to the tech rehearsal and judging. No sewing, gluing, spray painting, welding or other construction work is allowed back stage. Final assembly of large costumes and props and/or unexpected, emergency repairs will be allowed.
2. Surprise the audience, not the Cos•Play Contest staff. If you are planning something completely different, let us know well in advance. All information will be held in the strictest confidence.
3. No Whiners! Entrants are presumed to be adults, or be under the supervision of one & should behave as adults. Small children must be under the control of a responsible adult at all times.
4. All judge’s decisions are final. The judges reserve the right to adjust their awards for: exceeding your time allowed with the judges, lack of professional courtesy shown toward fellow costumers, arriving late for the judging, or any other subjective reason. See rule 9.
5. The Cos•Play Contest Director has the right to eliminate any entry from the competition on the basis of taste, danger to the audience or facilities, violation of any of the above rules or any other reason deemed sufficient. There will be no appeal. See rule 9.
6. Those completely new to the Cos•PlayContest should attend the Cos•PlayContest 101 panel.

Summary of award categories

See special awards on separate page

Winning ‘Best of Show’ at any large regional convention moves a costumer up to the next skill division.

Special Awards - These additional awards are granted at the discretion of Judges.

* these awards are not necessarily awarded every year, only if a particular costume or performance meets criteria

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