Cosplay Craftsmanship

General info

• The craftsmanship competition mainly observes the construction of the costume and the similarity to the character.
• It is not possible to apply with a costume that is not made by the competitor.
• Competitors can get help from others in parts or accessories of the costumes, but the jury must be informed about this.
• You cannot apply with a costume you competed before in any event organized by MondoCon.
• You can only apply with official illustrations of officially published characters (manga, anime, film, video game, book cover, etc.) or internationally recognized fanarts of these official characters. Applying with your original design is not allowed.
• We are only accepting maximum 18 solo applicants for the competition.
• You can apply more than one cosplay competition per day, but you will only appear on stage once.
• The minimum age to apply to this competition is 14 years!
• Stage time limit: min 30, max 60 seconds.
• Do not litter on the stage, if you drop anything during your performance, pick it up at the end!

Prohibited!!!

• Open fire (ex.: fireworks, sparklers).
• Using pyrotechnic devices (ex.: smoke machine).
• Bringing liquids on stage.
• Throwing dust/glitter/confetti/anything that can take a lot of time to clean up.
• Cannot bring real guns, firearm, knives, swords and any sharp weapons in the convention place.
• Throwing anything off the stage.
• Standing on chars or tables on stage.
• Play fighting with bulky, heavy weapons.
• Costume or performance that are age restricted by law, hateful to people or social groups.

You will be disqualified if:

• you don’t arrive until the time stated in the “Check-in/ get-in” paragraph.
• you cannot go up/down and move on the stage safely.
• you are competing in a cosplay not made by you.
• you broke the rules stated above.
• you are not dressed and in front of the jury at the given timeframe.
• your shared drive folder is empty.

Place and date of application

• You can apply to the competition on the mondocon.hu website (button at the end of the rulebook). The registration is open till 2025. April 13.
• We suggest you apply sooner rather than later to still have time to correct something in your application if needed.
• We check the uploaded files, but the organizers won’t take responsibility for faulty editing and bad quality.
• In case we find a technical issue in the uploaded files before the end of the registration period, we will contact you via email.  If you don’t provide the corrected version a week from receiving the organizer’s email your application will be rejected.

Check-in/ get-in

• Competitors need to provide their own tickets.
• Look for the MondoCon staff at the gates from 9:00 (opening time) at the “Cosplay Gyülekező” red balloon gate, they will help.   

• If you are not able to participate in the event or you have a strong reason the renounce your application, please contact the staff at cosplay@mondocon.hu till the deadline (2025. April 13.).
• If something happens on the day of the event preventing you from competing or attending you can notify the staff via phone hun: +3620/3464619, eng: +3670/4575448.
• If you don’t attend the competition without notifying us in any channel, you will be excluded from future competitions. For 3 missed attendances without notification or explanation you will be excluded for 1 year.
• In case you cannot make it on time for one of the checkpoints due to unforeseeable circumstances, please notify the organizers via phone (hun: +3620/3464619 eng: +3670/4575448), they will decide if you can still compete.

Requested data and files

General data

• Real (civil) name
• Nickname (this will be used on all platforms)
• E-mail address (regularly monitored and reliable)
• The character’s name you cosplay
• Source/Fandom (ex.: anime/game/tv-show/other)
  • In case you cosplay a fanart version, please provide the official source of the character, the fanart’s artist and a link to their work. (ex.: Ariel – The Little Mermaid – Hannah Alexander artwork – https://hannah-alexander.deviantart.com/)
• Full name of your helper (if you need it)
• Light requests:
  • You have to provide exact times for the light requests
  • Example: 0:00-0:05 dark, 0:05-0:30 red lights, 0:30-0:50 white lights, etc…
  • Options:
    • solid color (RGB color scheme)
    • flickering
    • small spotlights (random movements)
    • multicolored (ex.: fire effect)
    • brightness level (ex.: bright, semidarkness) 
  • We cannot provide one big spotlight following you!
• Props/stage dressing
  • You only have 30 sec to arrange everything on stage and take you starting pose.
  • The stage crew will help you with your props.
  • We appreciate if you make/draw a visual stage map for your props and items (upload it to the drive folder).
• Date of birth
• Other requests (Please give a list of stage props and where you want to place them if you didn’t prepare a visual stage map)

Files

Upload all your files into a Google Drive folder and provide the shared link in the „Drive link” field. (Don’t forget to put it on public!)

Naming the files

• The files’ name has to contain the contestant’s name.
• The file name should not contain accents, capital letters and special characters. Instead of a space, use underscore.
  • Stage background picture: ExampleName_szinpad.png
  • Music title: ExampleName_02_30.mp3
  • Video title: ExampleName_03_12.mp4
  • Reference video: ExampleName_referencia.mp4
  • Progress book/ progress pictures: ExampleName_portfolio.pdf

Picture for the stage

• Minimum 1280×720 resolution
• Horizontal 16:9 aspect ratio
• Please don’t upload watermarked images
• Please don’t upload pixelated images

Reference picture

• Mandatory to upload minimum 1 full body picture of your character which shows the shoes as well.
• If you add extra details, props without reference the jury won’t be able to evaluate it without comparing to something.

Music

• You have to send an edited soundtrack matching the length of your stage time, the organizers cannot do it for you (minimum 30, maximum 60 sec).

Parameters:

• Format: .MP3
• Maximum time limit: 1 min (1:00)

Pre-judging time slots

• Choose a time slot when you realistically will be ready to present your costume to the judges.
• In case you have a strong reason why you cannot be ready on time, notify the organizers and you will be the last one at the pre-judging.

The competition

You will receive this itinerary in email after the application period ended. Don’t forget to check your emails on the week before the event!

Pre-judging (10:00-12:00)

• First the competitors will take part in the pre-judging in front of the international jury.
•  The pre-judging will be held in English.
• We suggest you to think about in advance what you want to say about your cosplay, but be prepared to answer the jury’s questions as well.
• You will only have two minutes to explain how you created your costume. The jury is mostly interested in the techniques you used to create your costume.
• Since the judges are experienced cosplayers, we recommend you to draw attention to the special details of your cosplay.
• The pre-judging is mandatory.
• Everyone will be scheduled into time slots when you have to appear in front of the judges.
• The competition will continue with the stage performances.

Stage performance

• You have to be at the main stage 15 minutes before the competition will officially start and notify the cosplay staff!
• You will appear on stage in a predisposed order, the staff reserves the right to change this if needed. The cosplay staff members will let you know when it’s your chance to shine!
• After the hosts announce you, there will be a short 5-10 sec promo video.
• While these happen on stage you can take your place either on stage or at the stairs leading up.  Your soundtrack will start after the promo video and your stage picture will appear on the screen.
• In case you need more than 10 sec to take your place and dress the stage, don’t forget to include it in the application form!
• Please be mindful of your weapons! Don’t throw them off the stage or hit the lights at the back!

Awards

 The winners will be announced on stage during the awards ceremony.

Award categories

• Best Costume – This award is given to the contestant whose costume is the most spectacular and most similar to the original.
• Best character similarity – This award will be those who can provide the best overall picture and embodiment of the character, even if the costume is not super detailed.
• Best makeup (optional) – This award is given to competitors who did the best job with their make up or special effects to improve their overall appearance. The award will only be presented if the judges found someone with exceptional workmanship.
• Best newbie (beginner award) – those competitors can win this award, who has never won any craftsmanship award before at MondoCon events and made something truly fantastic (costume, accessories, makeup, character similarities).
• Best in show – Those receive this award, who give a little spice to their show. It could be a little dance / monologue / scene in harmony with their portrayed character. (Ref: EuroCosplay competitors)
• Audience’s favorite – Those will win this award, who get the most votes from the audience.