PUCHICON COSPLAY CONTEST & MASQUERADE RULES & INFORMATION:

Click the following link to Apply for Masquerade

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Puchi-con encourages all of our guests to come in and be creative with their cosplays. We want everyone to be safe and enjoy the convention. To do so, in accordance with the local, state, and federal safety and regulations, there are some restrictions as to what can be worn and what can be brought to the con. Please be mindful and respectful to everyone. This con is open to everyone and body shaming or being inappropriate to other guests or con-goers will not be tolerated. Any minor infractions of the rules will result in being asked to be changed. Any major or repeated infractions to the rules will result in you forfeiting your badge and expulsion from Puchi-Con with no refunds. 

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COSPLAY RULES 

- Indecent Exposure: Cosplayers are not allowed to expose private parts of their area during the convention. We ask all our female cosplayers to have a minimum of coverage as a bikini and male cosplayers to have a coverage brief style. Proper steps must be taken by our cosplayers to make sure their costume is fashionably secure and prevent any possibility of a wardrobe malfunction. 

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- Shoes are required at all times: All of our cosplayers are required to wear shoes at all times during the convention. 

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- No Sharp Edges or Spikes: Cosplayers must not have any sharp edges on their costume. All edges must be made up of a soft material that will not harm any other attendees or damage any property. 

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- Cosplay cannot obstruct the view or passageway: All cosplays must fit through the doorway or cannot take up the span length of two people. If a cosplay is disrupting the flow of traffic, you may be asked to remove your cosplay or change your cosplay outfit. Exceptions to this rule will be granted for the cosplay contest. 

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- Cannot pose as military or first responders: There are no realistic depiction of the military, law enforcement, or other official government uniforms allowed. No first responders uniform are allowed at the convention. 

 

Props Rules 

All props brought in to the convention and surrounding spaces are the responsibility of the owners. The owner assumes and acknowledges the risk of prop damage, lost, or theft. The owner assumes full liability for oneself and for others. Puchi-con is not responsible for any damage, lost, or stolen prop or items. Puchi-con is also not responsible for any injury, harm, damage, or other liability associated with any person’s weapon, prop, or costume during the convention. Puchi-con has the right to not permit any weapons for any reason into the convention.

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- No Live or Steel Metal: No prop or weapon made of metal is allowed into the convention. Any sharp-pointed weapon or blade will immediately be turned down and ask to be put away before entering the con. Dull wood weapons and plastic weapons are allowed, but may not be swung, brandish, or involved in other sorts of motion. 

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- No Compound Bows: Professional, straight bows, and loaded toy bows are also not allowed. Arrows must not be made of metal and do not have a sharp pointed edge. 

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- No Real Guns or Firearms allowed: 

Prop Guns are also not allowed in the convention. Anyone who brings in a replica of a firearm will be asked to remove from the convention or leave the premise. Foam & cardboard is ok.

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- No Explosives: Any explosives (including firecrackers or fireworks) are not allowed 

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- Misuse of your prop: Use of props that violates Puchi-con rules in any way, or if it’s deemed unsafe by the staff will result in expulsion from the con without refund.

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Puchicon has re-worked their Cosplay Masquerade to be in-line with other anime conventions in the area (like Anime NYC, New York Comic Con, Otakon, Katsucon, and many others). During Puchicon Teaneck we had started to implement some of these changes, but this year we are making sure the changes are known in advance and clearly laid out. 

A Cosplay Masquerade combines craftsmanship and performance aspects. There are typically 3 levels for craftsmanship, but Puchicon has added a fourth for our younger cosplayers. Our Craftsmanship levels are as followed. 

• Kids: Cosplayers ages 15 or younger

• Novice: Cosplayers over the age of 15, and have won anywhere from 0-2 awards for any of their cosplays

• Journeyman: Cosplayers over the age of 15, and have won anywhere from 3-6 awards for any of their cosplays

• Masters: Cosplayers over the age of 15 and have won over 6 awards for any of their cosplays. 

Our judges are experienced and trained to judge off craftsmanship, creativity, and knowledge of craftsmanship. Judges will be touching garments and examining props for the purpose of choosing the best craftsmanship. The Cosplay Judges may move contestants up a level at their discretion if they find that their skill set better aligns with a higher category while they are inspecting their cosplay. The judges will always ask before approaching to inspect craftsmanship/seams/etc. and will be careful with everyone’s cosplays. The Cosplay Repair booth will be close by in case of any mishaps and/or need for repair before or after judging as well as during the convention weekend.

Store-Bought cosplays will no longer be eligible for awards for the Cosplay Masquerade. A new event will be created for those to showcase any store-bought cosplays. 

 To be eligible for Craftsmanship awards and Best in Show, you must be present at craftsmanship judging in cosplay. If you do not show up in cosplay, the judges cannot properly assess and judge your cosplays, or ask questions about how your cosplays are put together. At least 70% of your cosplay must be made or heavily altered* by yourself or the person entering it into the masquerade. If you are modeling a cosplay made by someone else, only they would be eligible for winning the craftsmanship awards and they must be on-site to win. 

If you enter a cosplay that is store-bought, the only awards you can be eligible for are performance awards (like best skit/performance, and best stage presence.) There are several types of performances allowed; skits, dances, singing, and other types of performances (to be approved at the Cosplay Director’s discretion). 

 

MASQUERADE RULES

• All cosplays and props must be self-contained (contestants must be able to get themselves on and off stage by themselves or have their own assistant/handler. We cannot guarantee we will have staff on-hand to assist getting contestants on and off stage) 

• No real weapons allowed (even if the edges are dull/unsharpened) on the premises 

  • This includes realistic looking firearms, projectiles, and/or guns

• No pyrotechnics, vapes, e-cigs, or smoke machines of that nature as they are not permitted inside the venue 

• Everything that is brought onto the stage must come off the stage with you 

  • I.e.: throwing confetti or flower petals is prohibited 

• No live combat or gymnastics in the stage area (message the cosplay director at puchiconcosplay@gmail.com with any questions)

• No use of excessive profanity in skits (language must be PG-13 as Puchicon is a family-friendly event)

• No throwing things off stage. If your skit requires moving off-stage, email Puchiconcosplay@gmail.com

• Do not exceed the time limit of your skit (Max time allowed, 3 minutes) going over will get you/your group disqualified

• If your Skit requires Music or recorded dialog, it must be provided by the contestant and given to the cosplay director no later than Saturday, October 21st, 2023, by 4pm otherwise you will not be able to perform

  • You can give your music to the cosplay director either before or after pre-judging 

• If you are doing a walk-on, background music will be provided by Puchicon IT and played in the background

• If you are doing a skit, you need to have an introduction for your skit (one or two sentences) written down on your application in the introduction box. 

  • Failure to write an introduction for your skit means that Puchicon staff will have to improv and the Puchicon Cosplay Director is very bad at that. If that affects your performance that is not the fault of the Cosplay Director.

  • The MC may be able to Improv, but do you want to take that risk?

Masquerade Judging Rules: 

• Each contestant can only be in one skit (even as a background character or audio only) is prohibited and can lead to both groups being disqualified from potential awards

• You may NOT enter the same cosplay into the Hall contest and the Masquerade. Entering the same cosplay into both contests will result in being disqualified from both contests. 

• Contestants caught cheating (aka, claiming someone else’s work as their own) will result in getting Blacklisted** and will not being able to win awards at this and future events at Puchicon. 

• If you have entered a cosplay into the masquerade that has won an award before, it must have been Heavily Altered* or improved since the last time it has won an award to be eligible for another award. 

• If entering at the Master Craftsmanship Level, you must have a Build Book*** to showcase the progress of your build to the judges. It can be either a physical Build Book or a digital build book. 

• At least 70% of your cosplay must be made or heavily altered* to be eligible for a Craftsmanship award or Best in Show

• Have a refence photo of your cosplay available for the judges to see at the time of your judging.

 

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*Heavily altered: when a “store bought” item has been altered to the point that it no longer resembles what it originally looked like when it was bought. (i.e.: Buying a bodysuit and sewing it to fit better, then painting on designs so it fits the character better)

**Blacklisted: A practice in the competitive cosplay community. It’s a list of contestants who have broken several rules, proved to be untrustworthy, and if there is reasonable doubt at the legitimacy of their claims, and have thus been banned from winning any future awards. 

***Build Book: A Build Book is a way that competitive cosplayers showcase how they build/made their cosplays to cosplay Judges. It can be used by cosplayers competing at any level, but it is particularly useful for those competing at the master craftsmanship level to show how you put your cosplay together—from the planning stages, to sewing it together, to the final cosplay.