Panelists:
Jay Whittaker (Moderator)
Megan Golden
Izzi Keener
Candace Tarkeshian
Svetlana Quindt
Summary:
To cap off my first day of Comic Con panels (all of which concerned cosplay), I attended the Creating Your First Cosplay Panel. Moderated by Jay Whittaker of The Geekshow podcast, panelists included Megan Golden, Izzi Keener, Candace Tarkeshian, and Svetlana Quindt (better known as Kamui).
Holy crap. Kamui is hilarious. She’s a world-famous cosplayer from Germany and she’s written several books and made a lot of videos about cosplay tutorials. In particular, she shows people how to craft pieces (like armor) out of inexpensive materials, and she has been successful enough that she and her husband have quit their jobs and now support themselves with these tutorials. She has traveled to Cons all around the world and now I see why. Not only does she know what she’s doing, but she’s SO entertaining. Her accent is instantly endearing, but she’s also very quick-witted and kept us rolling in the aisles.
That’s not to take anything away from the other panelists either. Izzi, Megan, and Candace had all been on panels that I had just barely attended, but they were able to bring something else to this panel even though it was a similar topic. Most notably, they talked about some of the struggles of creating your first cosplay and the plethora of helpful sites and resources that are out there. The cosplay community is very inclusive and there is a strong sense of camaraderie and support. If there is something that you want to try or find, or a material that you’re struggling with, just ask. Chances are someone else has had the same issues and there is an army of people out there who can help you find the answer.
This was my favorite panel of the day and one of my favorites from the whole Con. I loved all of those panelists- Izzi with his sexy voice, Megan with her glowing smile, Candace with her sassy attitude, and Kamui just being Kamui. It was highly entertaining. In fact, I dragged a friend along to the Con who isn’t really a familiar with cosplay or much of the geek culture in general, and she loved the panel. The first day of cosplay panels was her favorite of all three days of Salt Lake Comic Con.
-TIM
Audio:
Audio from this entire panel will be made available via a future podcast (that we haven’t started yet).
