[PAX INTERVIEW] MAJOR SAM COSPLAY Interview

With the Australian leg of the Cosplay Central Crown Championships being held at Pax 2024 we decided to have a chat with Aussie Cosplay Royalty – Major Sam Cosplay.

1. Where does your passion for cosplay derive from? Was there a particular moment or experience that gave you that lightbulb moment?
   
   I’m naturally a maker in heart and mind and have very few skill points in other aspects of adult life so cosplay gave me a fantastic reason to craft with so many different mediums, tools and materials.
   
   
2. Cosplay is a medium for different reasons – a sense of community, a launchpad for industry, improved mental health, etc. – but what does Cosplay and the Cosplay community mean to you?
   
   I love the cosplay community as it is a wonderful platform for people to show off their hard work that deserves to be seen and admired, up close and from afar. Cosplay has provided me with friendships that I don’t ever feel could have been as exciting and as nurturing as if I met these people outside of cosplay. I met my husband through cosplay so I guess that’s pretty cool too.
   
   
3. This might be a tough question but what has been your favourite cosplay and why?
   
   I really love my Willie Scott dragon costume from the beginning of Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom. It was a ton of work and it helped me meet some lovely industry people in LA because of it.
   
   
4. Going the other way around, is there a particular cosplay nightmare where something just didn’t go to plan? Or was there a cosplay idea that got away?
   
   Trying to transport massive costumes internationally on multiple planes will always be the worst, most awful experience for any cosplayer, even when you think you’ve got it all figured out.
   
   
   
   
   
   
5. Being an active member in the world of cosplay for over a decade, you have worked with a number of industry professionals across stage and screen. What has been one of the highlights?
   
   Being able to work with a very large group of professional costumers over many months and learning how the industry works, learning things that you won’t ever learn from a book or the internet and getting to see massive sets that are often very hidden from the public.
   
   
6. Touching on the Cosplay Central Crown Championships, what opportunities does it offer to entrants?
   
   Competitions, especially ones of high caliber are the best places to not only make friends with other cosplayers but with people that you can learn from and inspire you. The ability to involve yourself with others’ excitement and ideas is so important for developing skills, both social and in the crafts, as well as medicine for your mental health.
   
   
7. You’re joining the Cosplay Central Crown Championships this year as a judge – is there anything in particular that you’re looking for or especially excited about?
   
   I’m purely excited just to be a part of everything after so many years of being a bit distant to cosplay because of work and COVID and to see what cosplayers have focused on the past few years.
   
   
8. Any words of wisdom or advice for this year’s entrants?
   
   The best thing you can take away from competing in a high-standard competition is to be kind to yourself if things don’t go to plan, learn as much as you can then learn some more, and lastly, take the opportunity to talk shop with other entrants and cosplayers as they are the most valuable people to learn from.