Visioncon Recap

My Bellatrix LeStrange Cosplay 

Over the weekend I was called once again by the crew at Toy Robot Photography to help wrangle cosplayers for con photos. This time I was at Visioncon at the Hilton Branson Convention Center in Branson, MO (February 23-25).

If you are not familiar with Visioncon, it is a comic convention that has been in existence for about two decades. It is a mid-sized con that reels in some pretty strong celebs, exhibits and professional cosplayers. You will not see the likes of Gal Gadot or Jason Momoa attending but you can very possibly see Laura Tyler from Face Off (FYI – I LOVE HER!!!), Keegan Conner Taylor from Once Upon a Time or John Shipp from the Flash.

Visioncon is a 501C3 organization who prides themselves on supporting location charities’. This year they turned their attention and support to the Springfield MO chapter of Habitat for Humanity.

It is a three day event kicking off on Friday around noon and wrapping up on Sunday at 2pm. Of course come for the customary opening and closing ceremonies but be sure to attend the minion auction and closing ceremony raffle since these are fundraising for a good cause.

The vendor floor is open Friday 12:00 -7:00, Saturday 9am -7pm and Sunday 9am to 2pm. Workshops and after hours events extend on into the night are usually 18+. Some of the more interesting after hours activities were the cosplay dating game & Whose Line is it Any Way. Expect your usual after hour parties as well but be prepared to travel as they are not always onsite at the venue.

Kewpie Doll Cosplay as Carl Grimes / "Itty Bitty Baby Potter"

Visioncon has a good online presence where you can keep an eye out for new VIP guests, check the schedule or pre-register for weekend passes. Pre-Registration costs are $40 for the weekend or $55 at the door with reduced rates for guests 13-17 years of age and kids under 13 are free with paid adult admission. Day passes are available too for $40.

The event is located in the Hilton Branson Center which is located on Sycamore Street in downtown Branson area. Garage parking was available for $10 for day or lot parking a bit further down for $5. I thought the garage was convenient and reasonably priced especially considering it was raining heavily on Saturday so we opted for garage parking. Your parking pass, unlike most places, allows for leaving and returning at no extra cost and the attendant was one of the friendliest and most attentive people I had ever encountered in such an environment.

The convention center is also one of two sponsor hotels, the second being Best Western. There is plenty to do, outside of the con, if you want. The downtown area was a pretty busy place with shopping, restaurants and other sources of entertainment. The Branson Landing galleria mall is within a couple minutes walk of the facility.

Since I mentioned restaurants & food, one big negative was the concessions costs at the venue. They were high! $22 for a pizza $8 for a burger. Now I usually have a cooler in my car with some healthier options than pizza, burgers and hot-dogs but this time I did not. We opted to take the crew off site for dining as a result.

Side note – I am curious if the community is very cos-friendly. I stopped by Hurts Donuts (NOMNOMNOM) and Chick-fil-A in full Bellatrix LeStrange gear. While I did get some strange looks for the “older” patrons I received a lot of smiles too! I just REALLY wanted to someone to ask me if I was with one of the Branson shows…yes the new Harry Potter Theater on 76! (hahahaha…wait that is a genius idea!!)

Hurts Donuts has SWINGS to play on!!!!  The witch goes to Chick-fil-A and was loved!!! 

Visioncon offered a very full schedule of panels / workshops, everything from paranormal investigations to costuming & prop making. Several of the workshops offered hands-on demos like wire wrapping jewelry. There were also panels on movie making, writing and storytelling and of course the now typical Nerd Community “Hot Topics” (i.e. – bringing your community together, cos-positivity).

Registration and check in went very smoothly but I did hear several people commenting security was a bit relaxed and “badge passing” was very easy. Since I was a media guest I did not receive a swag bag of freebies so I cannot really comment on what it contained or if one was offered.

This is my "isn't it cute" face!

The vendor floor was quite extensive. Vendor booths were primarily located on the bottom floor it did extended to a 2nd level. The vendors were the traditional set you would expect to see. Nothing very
surprising. authors, artists, comic book & collectible vendors, jewelry, corsets & clothing, t-shirts and other various handcrafted fandom knick-knack’s, jewelry and toys. I tend to purchase in the fandom of what I am cosplaying so I left with several Harry Potter prints, Lego mini-figs and a crocheted Hedwig. My favorite purchase was my Game of Thrones Turvis Wine Tumbler! WOOT! (Now I can drink and know things).

As far as layout, I noticed an issue with the arrangement of the con floor. Overall first impressions could be drastically different depending on which side of the stairs you descended. The left side looked very full and busy while the right side seemed sparse as it was occupied by community groups and people promoting other cons and activities. It also appeared that there was supposed to be a line of celebrity cars at the show. Sadly they did not all show up which created a huge empty space at the bottom of the space on the right side. I have never really noticed this to be an issue in the past at other cons. Maybe have a contingent plan and be prepared to move booths around to cover gaps. I have to wonder if the vendors on the right side, which also included the main stage, were impacted by the lack of booths or did the main stage draw people in and make up for it? Maybe a bit more flash at the bottom of the stairs so that whatever side they choose, people will be greeted right away by the glitter of the event.

The community cosplay groups were in full force at Visioncon. The local Ghostbusters crew were there complete with replica car and of course the fully decked out Star Wars 501st Legion with R2 units, a half scale Tie Fighter & a snow speeder.

This year the celeb guests were Casper Van Dien (Starship Troopers, Sleepy Hollow), Keegan Conner Taylor (Bates Motel, Once Upon a Time) and Andy Fields (Five Nights at Freddie’s). Celeb photos ops available for $40 or less for a selfie at the table. I did notice Casper Van Dein photobombing a couple of people! Go Casper…that made someone’s day. Casper also helped out with a Starship Trooper armor build workshop! Cosplay guests were Eric Moran & Kit Quinn.

Also available were a very busy gaming room and several Kid Friendly activities (Saturday only) like a Pokémon Hunt, Disney sing a long, Science experiments.

Con staff ere very helpful and easy to identify and there seemed to be a welcoming sense of community as most of the attendees and vendors seemed to know each other very well.

There was a strong attendance, but that seemed to be mostly Saturday from noon -8pm. Sunday hosted a very light crowd which could probably be boosted by offering some more significant Sunday content to draw people in. Also, I would suggest having a few “barkers” on the floor urging people to enter the costume contest.This is something I have seen at most cons, but did not encounter here. The organizers should also consider offering some “Cosplay Floor Awards” which is kind of a cool thing for those who cannot stay until the cosplay contest.

Visioncon is very cosplay driven, from the attendees to the workshops offered. I was quite impressed with the number and talent of the cosplayers we encountered. They were out in mass spanning all fandoms imaginable and the quality of the craftsmanship was on point.

As expected there was a Cosplay contest on Saturday night at 8pm. Awards offered for the following levels Journeyman (novice), Master (advanced), Exhibition (non-competition entry), and Youth (15 and under). Each competitor was judged on craftsmanship, materials, props, makeup & prosthetics, stage presence and the catch all “other” that incorporates lighting, animated parts, sound effects, etc.

This is my first year attending but have several friends who have attended or worked at Visioncon in the past who highly recommend we come out. Overall I thought it was a great con and I already putting it on the books for next year with a plan for bringing more of my cosplay crew with me.

Visioncon 2019 is scheduled for March 8-10, 2019 so MARK YOUR CALENDAR and join me there!

To Build or Not to Build

“To Build or Not to Build” really does seems to be a major question on the lips of many con organizers and cosplay judges.  It creates rivalries and hard feelings, but it is certainly at the core of the cosplay culture right now.

This weekend marked yet another whirlwind adventure for me and mine to the big ole’ town of Tupelo, MS just in time for the 2017 Tupelo Comic Con. That's right, geeking out in the birthplace of the King himself.

Tupelo Comic Con is your typical hometown comic convention complete with minor celebrity appearances, vendor area, prop cars, artists, cosplayers / fandom community row, gaming tournaments, A LOT of panels and the obligatory cosplay contest.

It was the cosplay contest, more so the structure of the contest, at this particular con that really caught my interest.  TCC hosted what was essentially two separate contests.  One specifically for craftsmanship, the second one for overall appearance and the wearer’s ability to represent the character. 

The Craftsmanship Contest required that a minimum 50% of the costume must be constructed by the contestant.  A model could wear the costume but the creator must be present.  They also stated costumes which had already won awards in other costume contests were not permitted, requiring a completely new and original piece from each contestant.  This contest had more strenuous rules and offered more significant prizes than most I have seen.

Wonderland Duo Cosplay (Belle & The Beast)

Tanealya & Robin Burks (Disney Jedi Mashup)

The Closet Cosplay Contest was 100% focused on the appearance of the wearer and the costume could be created using any outlets available, so predominantly store bought, commissioned or thrifted costumes were moved into this category.  There were five awards but it was mostly for bragging rights and being able to strut your stuff on stage.

A little something for everyone but not all competing in the same arena.

Like most cosplayers I find myself interested in the never ending argument of whether store bought or commissioned cosplay should be allowed in the same competition with something hand built by the wearer? 

Blue Bunni Cosplay (Mystery Girl), Derrick (Pirate Crew of MSB), Lauren Knight (Misa), Mr. Fish (Captain Obvious)

Ok here is my official standing on this.  I don’t know. 

Anti-climactic, right?  Sorry 'bout that, but here is my reason for being indecisive.

I have the utmost respect for people who painstakingly handcraft each element of their costume.  That being said, I also can appreciate the cosplayer who purchased or commissioned the costume and completely OWNS THE CHARACTER. 

Heidi (Hawkgirl), Lauren Knight (Velma), Tenitia (Muse), Natasha (Harley Quinn)

In the past I have been accused of being a bit of a “build it yourself snob” but I don’t always have time to completely design and craft costumes for upcoming events.  My recurring roles as mother, wife, and my real world job don’t always allow for time, and being a parent does not always allow the expendable income.  Cosplay is an expensive hobby.

Personally, I love to sew and create, but I do not always find it is the most effective way for me to create my costumes.  So yeah I will purchase pieces.  I will happily forego sewing leggings if I can buy online cheaper than I can purchase the fabric.  However, there is ALWAYS something of my own creation in my gear and it's usually a major component. 

James of Brickhouse Training (Logan) , Kewpie Doll Cosplay (X-23)

For TCC my favorite Kewpie Doll Cosplay wore her X-23 gear replicated from the Logan movie.  Because the character is in street clothes, not the usual superhero getup, this costume is 90% store bought.  Her claws were hand built, but the jeans, T-shirt, and denim jacket are all off the rack.  She received a “Cosplay Choice Award” on the floor and much praise about how she embodied the character.  Let's be frank a moment, even an unbiased observer looks at this kid and understands she was meant for this cosplay.  Is it award worthy?  Depends on the contest.

Red Skull Alliance Cosplay (Captain America)

So here is my question to you…Who is at the real disadvantage?  The person who contacted a designer, spent a lot of money to have their gear custom built to fit their body?  They may look great but not always be able to communicate to a panel of judges, who more than likely handcrafted their own gear, how it was fabricated.  Or the person who built everything themselves but may not have the same skill level as a professional seamstress. Maybe it needs to be something each cosplayer addresses for themselves, but it may come down to finding your place by strutting on the floor and bypassing the stage.

So I say again, I don’t know.  I do know this, as long as you are happy with your gear, wear it and do not allow anyone, fellow cosplayer or judge, make you feel unworthy.  I know a lot of awesome cosplayers who fall into both of these categories.  Let your geek flag fly as you see fit and don't worry about what anyone else thinks, but understand that each event has their own parameters for what they deem worthy of an award.

Always my partners in crime...Miss Scarlett Fever
& Comanche Rose (aka MidSouth Wonder Womna)

Oh yeah add Kewpie Doll Cosplay
to my normal partners in crime!

with Big Daddy Cool

I cannot forget my REAL partner in crime
master of shenanigans, my other half
and "staff photog" Darrell :) 

Keeping with my goal of positive support of others I am featuring some of my FAVORITE local cosplayers in this post!  This is by no means all of my favorites just a few who had epic designs that sprung to mind!