Answering questions for the Cosplay Central Crown Championships

We could only include a limited amount of information in our initial announcement and some of you had some questions about the new Cosplay Central Crown Championships, so we are happy to answer them!

• Will there be a qualifier in my country?
  We’ll confirm which events will take part as soon as we can. We will have a list on cosplaycentral.com of all of the events in the circuit.
• Is citizenship going to be important for qualifiers?
  The rules do include a restriction that “Events must select a registered citizen or permanent resident of the country the event takes place in" but some of the events in the circuit will be open to multiple countries, for example the qualifier at MCM London Comic Con will be open to residents and citizens of the UK and Republic of Ireland.



• Are you going to work with new conventions for qualifiers?
  Initially we will be working with events that we have an existing relationship with, but we may work with new events and new countries in the future.
• Will it be a single contestant or will teams be allowed?
  We have no plans to move away from being a solo competition.
• Will there be a qualifier at C2E2 this year?
  Because of the disruption to the show schedule this year and the proximity of C2E2 2021 to the other shows there will not be a qualifier in December. The C2E2 qualifier for the 2022 Crown Championships will be at C2E2 2022 (dates to be announced).



• If I win the qualifier do I have to pay to get to the Final?
  No! For the US regional selections - winners of the qualifiers at Florida Supercon, NYCC and ECCC will receive passes, travel and accommodation to attend the US Final Round at C2E2 2022.
  
  Cosplayers selected for the global Final will receive passes, travel and accommodation so they can attend the Final at MCM London Comic Con.
• Will the prizes be a classic 1st, 2nd and 3rd or will there also be category awards?
  For the Final we are planning on a top 3, but this may change as we discuss with sponsors and plans develop. Prizing for regional rounds may be different depending on each event’s preferences and the number of entries.



• “Costumes used for the Championships Qualifier or Final must not have been used for any previous international cosplay or costume contest Final.” What does this cover?
  We’ve all had a crazy year and we appreciate that some of you couldn’t wait to show off your work. If you've entered competitions at small physical events or online competitions you will be able to enter Crown this year with that cosplay, but if you've used the costume for big international stage competitions such as EuroCosplay, European Cosplay Gathering, World Cosplay Summit you can't use it for the Crown Championships (that includes cosplays from previous years). If you are still not sure if the event excludes you, please get in touch at cosplay@reedpop.com and we will confirm.
• If you're making a design by someone else, would it be eligible?
  Any concept design that has been publicly available for anyone to cosplay for one year can be submitted to the ‘Accuracy’ category (this includes designs by well-known artists such as Hannah Alexander Artwork, Sunset Dragon, Zach Fischer, etc.).



• If you are making your own designs do you need to show things like mood boards?
  If you are entering an original design the judges will expect to see a reference of the character (or characters) that your costume is based on and a concept sketch at the bare minimum. While not 100% required by the rules, it will help explain your design choices if you also include the other references that you bring into your design in a progress book or mood boards that you can bring for the judges.
• Can I enter with a commissioned design?
  Yes, you can enter with a commissioned design and it will be judged under the 'design; category. iI a cosplayer has an original design where they can show the research and thinking behind the design but have worked with an artist to render the design this is acceptable for the ‘Design’ category. If there has been a more intensive collaboration with the commissioned artist, this may be acceptable to be judged under ‘Accuracy’ rather than ‘Design’ or a blend of the two categories, at ReedPop’s discretion – please email cosplay@reedpop.com to discuss.



• Is a performance going to be absolutely necessary for winning or placing in the competition?
  We want to stress that the score is for Stage Presentation, creating a full performance is just an option for people who enjoy presenting a costume in that way.
  
  The stage show has two purposes - it not only creates an incredible show for the audience but it also allows the judges to properly assess the durability and movement of the costume in motion as this can’t always be done in a small pre-judging room.
  
  For the Crown Championships, Stage Presentation has a weighting of 15% of the total score. The judges will be predominantly looking at you showcasing the costume and all of the features to the audience. You will need to be able to move confidently in your costume without any issues and make use of the stage space so that the audience can appreciate your costume. If a cosplayer chooses to create a performance instead of a more simple presentation they will still need to make sure that they showcase the costume features and show that they can move in the costume.
• Will stage props be needed for the qualifier as well as the big competition in the UK?
  For the qualifiers in the US and UK, we are not allowing stage props. They will only be allowed for the Final in London. Other events in the circuit may vary so please check their rules when they become available.



• Will you have a dedicated place where we can find all the information about the competition?
  We will have a dedicated section of CosplayCentral.com coming soon where you will be able to find anything and everything about the contest, from all the events you can qualify at, the selected finalists, information about the Final, galleries of the finalists and more.
• Will you have an official Twitch/YouTube channel where every entry can be found?
  You’ll be able to find any of our streams and videos from the competition on the Cosplay Central YouTube Channel.

Registration is open now for the qualifiers at Florida Supercon and New York Comic Con, click here for more information

Thank you to everyone that asked questions - if your question isn’t answered here, or by checking out the rules for the Final, please send an email to the Cosplay Team at cosplay@reedpop.com and we'll get back to you as quickly as we can.