Masquerade
Schedule
Our Masquerade will take place on Saturday, October 21.
Masquerade Rules
General Information
All contestants and all individuals in a group must have a valid badge to attend NWIF 2023.
- A single badge CANNOT be split among a group.
All attendees must follow proper NWIF policies.
All attendees must follow proper COVID-19 policies laid out by NWIF.
- All contestants must wear a proper mask when not on stage. Masks can be taken off during time on stage or while eating or drinking.
All cosplay policies must be followed by all contestants.
This also includes immediate disqualification due to darkening or modification of human skin to appear a different human race. Things such as blackface, asian-fishing, and yellowface are included in this definition.
- Examples of blackface/yellowface include darkening the skin to appear as a different human race.
- Examples of asian-fishing include changing the eye shape to look more narrow/elongated and taping eyelids.
- Unnatural colors like blue, purple, etc are appropriate
- No hate symbols or symbols of political ideology
Every contestant must sign a waiver form to participate in the Masquerade. This form must be signed and sent online for each individual in the entry. (This will be attached to the application form).
- Minors participating in the Masquerade must have the waiver signed by a parent or guardian prior to check in.
Minors under the age of 16 participating in the Masquerade must be accompanied by an attendee chaperone over the age of 18. This includes rehearsal, judging, and backstage green room.
Competitors in the Masquerade are only allowed one performance entry and/or one craftsmanship entry.
- All contestants are allowed to have one appearance on stage.
- If you sign up for both performance and craftsmanship, you will only appear for the performance and not the walk on.
Everyone who is appearing on stage (i.e. helpers, handlers, chaperones for minors) must be mentioned within the application form. Access to the stage, green room, and craftsmanship judging areas will be restricted to individuals listed on the form.
Entries accepted into the competition will be notified, at the latest, the week after the application closes (September 29th, 2023).
NWIF Cosplay Events staff reserves the right to disqualify you for this year and/or future years if you break any of these rules, are caught cheating, or are disrespectful towards the staff, judges, or your fellow competitors (both in-person and online).
- Disqualification from the event will not qualify for a refund of a participant’s badge.
Entries and Divisions
Each entry will be categorized into one of the following divisions:
Novice: 0-1 major awards
Journeyman: 2-4 major awards
Masters: 5+ major awards
- This refers to the number of major awards won in cosplay competitions.
Contestants, if they so choose, can compete at a higher division but cannot compete at a lower division.
Anyone can be a "Master", you just cannot be a Journeyman or Novice if you've exceeded the number of awards listed.
Major Awards are defined as “Best in Show”, Best in Division, Runner-Up Awards, and numerical placements (1st, 2nd, 3rd).
- Judges' awards DO NOT count as major awards.
Performance and Craftsmanship will be two different contests with their own awards.
- A contestant may enter one entry for performance and/or craftsmanship.
- Both performance and craftsmanship will have Best in Division awards and Best Overall.
Contestants that are professional costume makers and/or make a majority of their income from costume/garment construction must compete at the Masters level.
When entering as a group, division will be based on the member with the most major awards. (Ex: a group with a Novice and a Master must compete in the Masters’ division.)
Judges & NWIF Cosplay Events staff can bump an entry up at their discretion if the skill level exceeds the entry after prejudging discussion.
Masquerade contestants have the option to enter for performance only, or performance with craftsmanship.
Contestants may choose to perform in bought/commissioned costumes but will only be eligible for Performance-related awards.
Check in Information
All entries are required to be checked in during designated times at the con. Times and location will be announced at a later date.
- Details will be sent out with Masquerade acceptance emails.
During the check in period, judging slots, dress rehearsal times, and stickers will be distributed to all contestants.
Changes to the skit after check-in can only be made under extreme circumstances like emergencies and illnesses. If this happens, please contact the Lead of Cosplay Events.
Performance/Skit Requirements
All skits must be family-friendly and follow NWIF policy. If the skit exceeds a PG-13 rating then it is not allowed. No cussing, inappropriate gestures, or sexual references are allowed.
- Any portion of a skit that is deemed inappropriate for a family friendly audience must be altered to fit these guidelines.
Each skit is allowed a maximum of 9 people. Anyone who is on stage during the skit is defined as a person, including handlers and stage ninjas. This is for the safety of all contestants.
Costumes from idol/idol-related source material are permitted, and can include but are not limited to: anime, manga, video games, movies, TV shows, fan designs, or original characters.This also includes OC Idols as well.
- This also includes idol specific designs from series such as Smewthie (Tokyo Mew Mew), Sera Myu dance performances (Sailor Moon), and other non-related characters imagined as idols.
No real weapons, airsoft guns, and/or live steel are allowed. All prop weapons must follow NWIF policies regarding weapons.
No nudity is allowed, according to NWIF policies.
Costumes must have unassisted freedom of movement on stage.
Anything that appears on the stage must come off with you.
Nothing can be thrown into the audience.
No person is allowed to jump off of the stage. This is grounds for immediate disqualification during the show.
The stage must be kept clean. No confetti, glitter, or anything that will make a mess.
No flammable objects such as fireworks will be allowed on stage.
No liquids, fog machines, or gas will be allowed on the stage.
No stunts (acrobatics, flips, etc) will be allowed on stage for safety reasons. Choreographed combat is allowed but must be clearly staged.
Only NWIF staff members are allowed to operate audio and video equipment. Contestants are not allowed to operate any staff equipment.
Any equipment that is broken by the contestant, the contestant is liable for the equivalent monetary compensation.
All audio must be pre-recorded. No live instruments or live singing will be allowed.
Breaking these rules are grounds for immediate disqualification during the show.
Skit Length and Timing
Skit length will be determined by the number of performers in a group. (Stage handlers and ninjas do not count towards the time limit.)
- 1-2 performers: 1:30 minute maximum
- 3-5 performers: 2:30 minute maximum
- 6+: 3:00 minute maximum
The time limits mentioned above will be strictly enforced.
Audio Submission
Audio must be submitted as an mp3 file to the Lead of Cosplay Events before October 6th, 2023. Details on how to submit audio will be provided to contestants after their application is accepted.
The mp3 file must include the name of the performer/group and skit.
The audio submitted will not be altered by any of the NWIF staff. If you wish to add any audio effects or pauses, this must be added in yourself.
Audio that does not fit requirements will be asked to adjust audio so that it follows the rules regarding audio.
It is highly recommended that the contestants bring a backup USB drive with the audio in case of technical difficulties. USBs will be returned at the end of the masquerade.
- This back up USB must be submitted at check-in.
- The USB must be labeled with the name of the performer/group and skit.
No CD submissions will be accepted.
Walk-On Information:
The walk-on portion of the masquerade is open to contestants who wish to be judged on craftsmanship but not do a performance/skit.
- Walk-ons will only be eligible for Craftsmanship Awards (not Performance based).
Each contestant will have a maximum of 30 seconds for their walk-on.
Costumes must have unassisted freedom of movement on stage.
Anything that appears on the stage must come off with you.
Nothing can be thrown into the audience.
The stage must be kept clean. No confetti, glitter, or anything that will make a mess.
No flammable objects such as fireworks will be allowed on stage.
No liquids, fog machines, or gas will be allowed on the stage.
No stunts (acrobatics, flips, etc) or jumping off the stage will be allowed on stage for safety reasons.
Walk-on entries must be present for the entirety of the masquerade.
Contestants who choose to walk on must report to the green room at call time to receive instructions and walk-on order. Contestants who do not show up on time will not be able to walk.
NWIF Staff will finalize the walk-on order.
Craftsmanship Judging
Contestants interested in being judged on craftsmanship must indicate this on their Masquerade application.
Craftsmanship will be judged on the interpretation of the character, the construction of the costume, the use of materials, attention to detail, and the representation of the skill division.
All costumes and weapons entered into the contest must follow NWIF policies.
At least 75% of the costume must be made by the individual entering the contest.
- No commissioned, rented, or professionally made costumes not created by the individual are allowed (unless the performer is a model, please see #5 below). This also extends to store bought costumes.
A model may wear the costume during judging and on stage but the person who made the costume must be present for judging.
- The maker should be present at the awards ceremony should they receive an award.
Costumes from idol/idol-related source material are permitted, and can include but are not limited to: anime, manga, video games, movies, TV shows, fan designs, or original characters.This also includes OC Idols as well.
- This also includes idol specific designs from series such as Smewthie (Tokyo Mew Mew), Sera Myu dance performances (Sailor Moon), and other non-related characters imagined as idols.
References of the character are required for judging. References can be physically printed or digital (shown on a phone or tablet screen), however physical references are preferred.
- For original designs and fan designs, a sketch, mood board, or some other form of visual inspiration counts as reference material.
- Build books or work in progress photos are highly encouraged but not required. Build books or other physically printed material must be picked up by contestants after the Masquerade.
- Any digital references/build books must be submitted before check-in.
Costumes that have previously won awards in competition will be permitted, as long as there has been at least 30% improvement to the costume since it won the award.
- Costumes that have won Best in Show will not be allowed to enter.
- Costumes that have won a Best in Division award must be entered at a higher level. (Ex: a Best in Novice costume with at least 30% improvement could be entered as a Journeyman costume.)
Any costumes that require electricity must have a self-contained power source. Contestants will not have access to outlets.
No costumes with confetti, loose glitter, live flames, smoke generators, or pyrotechnics are allowed.
The craftsmanship judging room is not open to the general public. Only one additional person can join the contestant in the judging room.
This can include a parent/guardian, a handler for larger costumes, or someone for support/anxiety.
Winners will be announced during the awards ceremony at the end of the Masquerade.
Contestants must retrieve their physical prizes at the end of the Masquerade.
At Convention
Line up/order of the skits will be finalized by NWIF staff.
Dress rehearsal is required for all participants of the performance portion. Rehearsal hours will be announced at a later date.
- Participants who do not show up on time for dress rehearsal will forfeit their slot in the competition.
- Please be prompt and on time so staff can move things smoothly.