Cosplay Contest Pre-Judging: A Random Cosplayer’s Guide

Cosplay Contest Pre-judging can almost be as daunting as being on stage. You are stuck in a small room, and you have but a few minutes with professional Cosplayers and Prop Fabricators to show them the months (or more) you have spent on your cosplay. It’s okay, everyone is nervous when you are running the gauntlet of critique the first few times. Even then, Cosplay Contest Pre-judging is still daunting.

Take a deep breath, and read on. You got this!

Before Pre-judging:

Consider Pre-Judging a gauntlet that starts at about the same time you begin designing your costume. When you design your cosplay for competition, you should consider pre-judging during your build. Have a notebook handy where you can journal your cosplay. It makes the task of creating a build book much simpler.

Next, you need to get your hands on the cosplay contest rules. These will tell you the boundaries of the contest, what you are/are not allowed to do in competition, and how Pre-judging will be happening at the event. If you have questions, reach out to the event through Discord / Social media / E-mail. Most cons will get back with you quickly, and that will help you start a professional relationship with the event team. Good to have if you ever plan on being a cosplay guest.

Find out who the judges are before the event. Most events announce this before the show to hype-up attendance. Once you find out, check through their social media and look at their costumes. What are their specialties/what are their cosplays focused on? Look at other events they attended. Can you discern who won at that show? Take lot of notes, and keep them handy. They will serve you in contests to come along your journey.

Once you arrive to the event, sign up as early as possible for cosplay contest pre-judging. If you are allowed to choose a certain time, try to take as close to the earliest of the middle that’s available. Judges are like the rest of us, and most judges are burned out after sitting in a room for several hours like a retail cashier. You want the freshest eyes possible looking at your cosplay. Find out when sign-ups start before you get to the event if possible. Get a map of the event so you know where to go to sign up and meet the judges.

Utilize the map and meet the judges at their booth or a panel before pre judging. Ask questions about their cosplays, and their craft. This will give you an idea of how they judge, and the questions they will ask you when you are being pre judged. DO NOT brag/show-off your cosplay UNLESS they ask about it. Don’t take up too much of their time, but make sure you have what you need.

Before you get in line, make sure everything about your cosplay is ON POINT when you are getting ready to get in line. Have a friend/handler/minion bring your Oh SH*T kit with you for your cosplay in case of an emergency in line. Mentally prepare yourself by going through your notes you took earlier. Focus on an aspect of your cosplay that you are proud of that they will like. Make sure you have your build book out and ready before pre-judging starts.

During Prejudging:

When you get into the room for pre-judging, make sure you hand them your build book first. Have photocopies of it for each judge. If there are more judges that are not in pre-juding find them afterwards and make sure they look at your build book. Focus on what you made and your process. Be honest with yourself and them, but try to make them focus on what it is you know they will like about your cosplay. Point out what you didn’t make/had made. Your goal is to have as much of your cosplay made yourself, and the rest “farmed out”.

Judges will have a rubric to judge your cosplay. Keep that in mind as you are asked questions. At times, it may be prudent to point out specific parts of the costume to make sure you are being scored as high as possible for their rubric.

It’s okay to be nervous while judging, but try to keep it as light as possible. Have a witty joke or a horror story to tell the judges. Make sure that it gets everyone to laugh. You want it to be lighthearted, but funny enough that they remember you. Thank them kindly for the opportunity to win. They will appreciate it. Most prejudging will be a matter of minutes. Do not attempt to get more time during prejudging.

After Pre-Juding:

If you have not yet, find the judges that were not involved with Pre-Judging, and talk to Them. Treat it like a second pre-judging, even if it doesn’t seem like it. Chances are, you will get more time with them while at their booth than if you were pre-judged by them. Just as if you were at prejudging, have a funny story about your construction to tell to make them laugh a bit.   

Cosplay judging is one of the hardest parts of a convention’s operations. Make sure you know and understand the rules before you compete, and try to network as much as possible. You can always use another contact to “farm out” a part of your next cosplay. 

Good luck, and see you at the next event!