Official Rules

Participating in the Senshi Con 2023 Cosplay Masquerade contest requires time commitments for mandatory dress rehearsal, prejudging (for Craftsmanship entries), pre-show check-in, and the showcase itself.

• All contestants must be registered attendees of Senshi Con.   

​

• All costumes and skits must adhere to Senshi Con policies. Please see the Senshi Con Cosplay Guidelines policy page for a complete list.

​

• Each contestant may only appear in a single entry, whether a Skit entry, a Costume entry, or a combination of both.  Combined entries are still required to attend prejudging for the Craftsmanship portion of their judging

​

• All sign-ups are online only — No Entries will be accepted for the show or wait-list at the convention. Applications will be accepted until 08/27/2023 at 11:59pm. If all slots fill before then, entries received after hitting the entry cap will be placed on a waiting list. If any confirmed entries drop, places will be offered to those on the waitlist on a first-come-first-serve basis. 

​

Additions to the contest roster shall be halted after 09/03/2023 at 11:59pm. At this time, no new entries will be added to the showcase lineup from the waitlist, regardless of any accepted entry being withdrawn.

• For those with Craftsmanship entries, there will be (2) sections: the Prejudging section and the Presentation section. Additionally, there is a 40 entry cap. Once this fills, the rest will be placed on a wait list. If a confirmed entry drops, the space will be offered to those on the waitlist on a first-come-first-serve basis.

​

• Pre-judging  will take place the day of the contest during one of three time slots that participants will have the opportunity to indicate preference for. 

​

• You will be expected to fill out a pre-judging questionnaire prior to your scheduled judging time. If you are unable to do so due circumstances out of your control, you must notify the coordinator as soon as possible to determine if accommodations can be made. 

​

• At the time of pre-judging, entrants must have digitally submitted the following materials:  

  • At least 2 color reference images of each costume. We recommend that at least one be a full-body shot.  Exceptions will be made where only one image exists (i.e. an art book illustration or promotional art).

  • At least 5 color progress pictures of each costume, including a full body image of the final piece.

  • 1 Prejudging form

​

• During pre-judging, contestants will need to be in full costume. Any costume pieces not worn and/or props not present during judging will be excluded from scoring.

​

• Contestants will be evaluated one entry at a time. Individuals will be granted 5 minutes, while groups will be granted a minimum of 5 minutes, up to 10 minutes depending on the size of the group. 

​

• Craftsmanship Entries will be evaluated on the following criteria:

  • Execution – How well the costume is constructed.

  • Accuracy/Intentionality – How close the costume is to the reference material. Areas NOT considered for this category include race, ethnicity, size, use of mobility items, corrective vision or lack thereof, socioeconomic status, other health, cultural or religious identities that may differ between the entrant and the character being portrayed.

  • Complexity – How wide the range of skills used in the project, and the difficulty level of those techniques.

  • Creativity – Design choices, use of unusual materials, personalized embellishments, etc.

​

• Entrants MAY NOT enter a costume which fits any of the following criteria:

  • Has been entered at a previous Senshi Con cosplay contest and features no significant additions or changes as determined by the cosplay coordinator and/or Senshi Con staff.

  • Has won an award in Masters or Best in Show at any convention.  (Novice and Journeyman award winners from other conventions may be entered, at the level above the award received.)

​

• Craftsmanship Entries may be either Individual, or as a group.

  • Individual entries will be judged on the quality and craftsmanship of a single costume (including props and accessories).

  • Group entries may have 2 to 5 cosplayers. Any groups larger than that must be approved by the contest coordinator. Groups will be judged based on the quality and craftsmanship of the group as a whole. In other words, the entire group will receive a single score.

​

• All entries, Individual or Group will register under ONE of the following categories.  Groups must enter under the category of their most experienced group member:

  • Bought/Commissioned: You bought more than 25% of your costume from a store or online supplier, or you commissioned/paid someone else to make more than 25% of your costume for you.

  • Novice: You has never won a contest, or have entered fewer than three (3) contests before. At least 75% percent of your costume was made by you. Parts not made by you must be disclosed at the time of judging.

  • Journeyman: You or anyone in your group has won an award in the past, have participated in more than three (3) contests before, or have made more than 8 costumes. At least 75% percent of your costume was made by you. Parts not made by you must be disclosed at the time of judging. This category is also open to anyone who feels they belong there so long as they do not also meet the requirements for the Masters category.

  • Masters: You or anyone in your group has won an award in intermediate or higher at any convention, or have made more than 20 costumes. Anyone who does cosplay work professionally (such as commission work, selling hand-made costume accessories, or works for industry events) MUST enter at Master Level. At least 75% percent of your costume was made by you. Parts not made by you must be disclosed at the time of judging. Anyone may enter the Master class at their own discretion. 

​

• Judges reserve the right to adjust your category if they deem that your cosplay was entered at a level below the appropriate category. In this instance, the judges must unanimously agree to the adjustment.

  • Upon entry approval, Craftsmanship contestants will be given a link to a Google Drive folder. This will be where you will submit any files/documentations requested/applicable to your entry (photos, videos, etc.) — though you do not have to submit them at the time of your approval, all files are due no later than at 08/28/2023 at 11:59pm (24 hours after applications close)

  • Should a waitlisted entry be selected for an opening, the entrant will have 24 hours from the time of confirmation of receiving their acceptance notice to upload all the support documentation noted above. 

​

Any questions regarding the rules or application process can be directed to the Cosplay Coordinator.

Those choosing to enter a skit may do so with or without craftsmanship judging.  Skits will be judged based on the quality of the performance, including entertainment value, stage presence, and audio quality/clarity.  

​

• There are no levels in the Skit category — Skits will all be evaluated equally, with awards handed out based on overall quality.

​

• Skit Entries will be evaluated on the following criteria:

  • Stage Presence – How well is the skit performed, do the performers appear to be confident, and how obvious are mistakes.

  • Entertainment Value – How well does the performance engage and keep the attention of the audience and judges.

  • Creativity – performance choices, use of unusual movements and/or materials, personalized performance, etc.

  • Audio Quality – Is audio clear and does it complement the performance (technical difficulties on Senshi Con’s part will not affect this score)

​

• Skits are limited to 3 minutes and should be planned with this limit in mind.  If this limit absolutely cannot be met, up to 3 minutes and 30 seconds may be allowed on a case-by-case basis at the discretion of the cosplay coordinator.  Anything over that duration will NOT be accepted. Please email the Cosplay Coordinator with questions.

  • Skits must be screened for general content. Sometime before your audio submission, please provide a ‘script’ in your digital file-share folder, including any of the following which applies to your skit:  Dialogue, general blocking (IE: Character A sword fights with Character B), and your choice of starting/ending lighting cues. For Dance-Focused performances, you may simply note the style of dance (IE: Belly Dancing, Ballet, etc.) or in the case of dance-covers, provide a link to a video of the original choreography. The Cosplay Coordinator may ask for additional information or clarification. If there is anything questionably against the rules or deemed inappropriate, you may be asked to make changes. Don’t be afraid to ask questions!

    • This is a PG event – please keep this in mind when planning your skit/or performing on stage. If you are unsure whether something is allowed or not, please email the Cosplay Coordinator.

​

• Skit Audio MUST be pre-recorded and sent as a separate mp3 file. 

​

• There will be a maximum of 10 entries allowed for the Skit Category.  Once this fills, the rest will be placed on a wait list. If a confirmed entry drops, the space will be offered to those on the waitlist on a first-come-first-serve basis.

  • Groups are limited to 10 persons per entry, including stage ninjas (which entrants must provide). 

​

• Upon entry approval, Skit contestants will be given a link to a Google Drive folder. This will be where you will submit any files/documentations requested/applicable to your entry (Audio, Skit Scripts, etc.) — though you do not have to submit them at the time of your approval, all Audio for Skits and Costumes is due no later than 08/27/2023 at 11:59 pm (24 hours after sign-ups close)

It is up to the contestant to state any possible conflicts of interest. Such conflicts will be evaluated by the cosplay coordinator, and appropriate action will be taken at the discretion of the cosplay coordinator and Senshi Con staff.

All awards are final. Poor sportsmanship may result in disqualification and barring from future contests. Additional “honorable mention” categories may be added at the judging panel’s discretion.

​

Harassment of judges, staff, other contestants, or any conduct that violates the Senshi Con policies may result in disqualification and barring from future contests. Further action may be taken at the discretion of the programming staff.

​

Thank you for participating and good luck!