Tracy: Hey guys it's Tracy with VainSoftGames. Today we are in for a special treat we are interviewing Angie. Hey Angie how's it going?
Angie: Hello Tracy, hello VainSoftGames thank you very much for having me with you today. I was very excited to hear from you that you wanted an interview with me. I was so excited because it's been such a long time since the last time that we collaborated for the Lara Croft concept.
Well, things in Greece are okay. I guess we don't have many cases coronavirus unfortunately although it's a bit strict like we have to go out with masks and stuff protection it's our priority right now so I'm trying to stay at home as much as I can and also work on my assignments because I have a lot of assignments for my exams these days but it's almost over and I hope that in the summer I will start doing new projects probably in the beginning of July because right then I will have finished with my UNI for this semester and I will have more free time.
Tracy: How long have you been cosplaying?
Angie: I have been cosplaying for about 4 to 5 years. I started cosplaying actually when I debuted my first cosplay it was 2015 that was the time that I finished high school and they learn for the first time that conventions were going on in Greece and that was when I made my first cosplay which was classic re and I went for to account for the first time that was my first time but I had cosplayed when I goes in the first grade of high school and I think that takes us back to twelve twelve yeah when I cosplayed for the first time hats nameko but that was about costume it wasn't mine yeah and I think I never did a suit with it but I felt so good even though I didn't go to a convention dressed as nameko.
Tracy: What's your favorite cosplay you've put together?
Angie: I don't have my favorite cosplay because I have two favorite cosplays like to be is one of my favorite barracuda which is like male version of Iron Man. It's also one of my favorites also I like my Eric costumes although none of them is well made I will have to fix my Eric costumes for the future but I think that my to be is the best sure cosplay that I've made but a CUDA is also one the best armor cosplays that I have done although I didn't make it alone I made it together with my friend Alex bass which is who is in a cosplay group cosplay Corp you should check them out and she was the one that initiated our collaboration, one day he sent a message to me saying that he was making a female version of Iron Man and he needed a model to continue the costume and wear it because he had only made them the torturer and she needed a model in order to continue the crafting part and she also needs a partner and I said I can help that's how our collaboration started.
Working on Barracuda
I am very glad that it worked out because I was so amazed by Buraku that's one of my I think it's my most successful cosplay until this day and it was unbelievable because I also got to work Barracuda at the perfect timing because Alex had the opportunity to display all of his previously made Ironman costumes to a Greek Con and that was also the count that a debuted Barracuda so it was both Mike de beauté of Barracuda and I had for background Mr. Starks armor display for the background.
So it was dope double go it was so amazing some people so that all the background armors of Ironman were photoshopped in the photos but no they weren't they were all there and that only happened once so I was very very lucky to experience that and take photos of my Barracuda with all of his armors for background it was sad know what I love to be for par to be also is that I love here character very much I love the game very much I made the the dress I'm bad sometimes the top it took me three times then I get to the point that I am satisfied so I could continue with the rest of the costume I also made two of your shorts share pod one the robot it was for a competition so I wanted everything to be in the highest quality to look good and I think that I made it I think that might be is still one of my best was place so far also elementalsbooks that I made for like for like European Championship that happened last year because the European Championship last year happened in Greece the fine nuts and I was there as a guest and I cosplayed dark elementalist looks which was very, very cool although I had a hard time making the costume because at that time that I had to make it I I wasn't very good mentally because I had a very difficult summer I was very stressed I had some personal problems that they have to take care of so it was a hard way to get there but I made it in the end and it looked very, very good I didn't expect it to turn out so good especially because I hurried a lot of parts but it was so beautiful in the end definitely one of my best cosplays imagine if it wasn't so stressed or if I wasn't I don't know so not mentally bad at that time how looks could be like I'm sure it would be a bit better but I'm very satisfied even with the result that I got over cosplay that I think I've made really well and like is Barak is a mara from Borderlands 3 which was a commission from city media which is the company that collapsed with 2k to bring borderland in Greece and I made the cosplay of Amara for jameth la Agora cone which was very very nice cosplay.
It was the first time that I'm a dude's gun but as Dark Elementalist looks also Amara had given me a lot of troubles because at that time that I had to make Amara I was also having my uni exams and I also I was very stressed it cost me very a lot of anxiety I also had some personal issues that I had to take care of at the time so it was very it also yeah it was very hard for me to make it on point and on time because I was also working on it alone. I thought that I would be able to find someone and work it together but I couldn't find anyone so all of the projects got on my shoulders and I did the best that I could within three weeks I had three weeks to make the creating costumes and I made yeah I think these four are the best cosplays that I've made but the two that I love more to be and but I could've because they were less painful and that goes in a better mental state whether I was making them it's always important to take care of your mental check and take breaks because if you overburn yourself it will be very bad both for you and for the people that care for you like everyone that was seen me in the events just as looks in the Mara they were very worried about me because they could see the exhaustion and I wasn't very good at the time but you know I I had to keep up I was I will sleep I will be better tomorrow yeah so take care of yourselves.
Tracy: If you could cosplay anywhere in the world?
Angie: I could cosplay anywhere I would love to go anyway I don't know anywhere but there is a cosplay convention I guess or that there is a great thing but I could go and take photos of my cosplay there are a lot of cons that I would like to attend like I would love to go to comic-con to money and there are countries that I would love to travel just to go there and take photos with the buildings or some kind of natural scenery I don't know I would love to go to the font America they tell you to speak I don't know so many countries I don't mind if there is a con going on when I will be there or if there it won't be any come there I don't know I would just love to travel anywhere and if I'm able to cosplay and attend the con when even better.
Tracy: Do you enjoy going to Cons in cosplay?
Angie: For the first years the Tigers was playing the first two or three years I was going through every single cone that there was going Greece and believe me we have a lot of constant Greece they are small most of them but we also have big ones and I was attending all of them and it was a great experience to go in cosplay meet new people you meet the same people as in previous ones even though I don't do that much anymore because right now after for five years I've seen every con more than two or three times so I prefer sometimes just go as a visitor without the cosplay because when I am in cosplay I can't enjoy the con to the fullest because I stop every few steps to take photos with the visitors which I really truly love but that also always helped me behind from exploring the con and seeing what kind of this place they have proved what artists they are around most of my accounts that from where from when I was playing was like that Mina cosplaying taking photos in a particular area in the cone I wasn't going around the cone until it was almost closed and the health of the artists we're gone so I could change into my normal clothes and do a fast going around in the cone and then it so nowadays when I go to cons I prefer to go as a visitor in plain clothes and I can still find my friends and meet new people but I guess less photos it means more time yeah and also it's more special when I cosplay because that is mostly when I get invited by the conventions or both because I work a lot more now with companies to be on their booth at their booth when a convention is going on or for a convention to invite me it's more special than to wear a cosplay and wear a very fascinating cosplay it makes it more of a special occasion so I think it's one way cosplay to me that's very three days for me.
Tracy: What is cosplay to you?
Angie: Cosplay is a way of creativity and to escape my stressful thoughts and problems and forget for a bit of the things that I have in mind but I think it's a lot more than that one of the reasons I love cosplay that much is because through cosplay I have made a lot of great people that I still have in my life and cosplay has changed me very much when I started cosplay I was a very shy girl with very little confidence I was feeling I don't know I go spin week sigh not good about myself and cosplay made me more of an extrovert it made me talk more be more confident I don't know just good plays amazing I think that the only way to understand me is if you cosplay for yourself and see what magic cosplay can do to you it will change you and your experience of cons and you will get to meet many amazing people and I'm more glad that I not only I meet amazing people but also I can help people to get more talkative like at some cons there are people that the airside to come and talk to me whenever I see that kind of scene I remember myself when I started cosplaying and I was just you know in some corner in a conversation staring at the cosplayers that I was admiring or at someone wearing a great cosplay and I was so shy of going near them and ask them for a photo of their name or how they are in social media whatever I was really sad and there was once an event that I knew one of my favorite cosplayers were going there and I wanted to see here because he would cosplay all right and I go into the event and I was really embarrassed to enter to enter them the next station is here in Greece we have soaps stirs I guess that you can rent a PC and get to play games they are called the internet stations Internet faith that stations during Greece and they often do some kind of small events and the invited cosplayers and I went there I knew that the cosplayer I admired was in there and I didn't got thing I was like I came here because play is inside but I can get inside and I lived because I was that kind of person back then but now of course I would just barge in I was like yeah but it's a hell of experience so now that I'm stronger and I'm less shy I try to help whenever I see people as I as me back then and I initiate a conversation first I go to them I don't wait for them to come to me and ask for a photo I go to them like hey have you seen the con do you have fun do you know what character and cosplay and you know I just try to break the ice and a lot of people have I been thankful for that because I broke the ice for them and then they had the confident to go and talk to other cosplayers as well and meet and get to make friends and I think that that's why cosplay is not only a hobby it's a lot more I can describe it you just have to cosplay yourself and say the magic because it's really a great great hobby do something simple for a beginning you don't need to be in full or more extra amazing cosplayer to get your eyes and you get the eyes of you you just need to have fun and love the characters that you're cosplaying if you are loving the character that you're cosplaying and you're cosplaying a character that is why known to you then the fans of the character will come to you for the photos and they will be super amazed with you picking that character who's playing that character and you will be able to talk with them about it and how amazing they are ends you will see that you have a lot of in common although you didn't know each other before that it's so great.
Angie: Have you ever cosplayed Tracy? Have you Tracy ever tried to cosplay? Have you gone to a con in a cosplay? Have you tried to just cosplay and take some selfies that's also very nice? Tracy: I have done cosplay some with VainSoftGames. I have yet to go to a con in cosplay, however, most of the costumes I've worn in general were for live theater performances.
Tracys Cosplay and Theater Outfits | Photos by @VainSoftGAmes
