38th Annual Comic-Con Masquerade
Now with an Exciting Added Prize!

Anyone who's ever attended Comic-Con can attest to the wide variety of great costumes that can be seen, whether on attendees in the corridors and Exhibit Hall, on display in glass cases, in miniature form on collectible figures, and in countless images on posters and books. Costuming is a vital ingredient of nearly all the popular arts and has been an integral part of fan conventions for many decades. Comic-Con's Saturday night big event is a unique evening of fun and amazing costume creations: the stage lights brighten, the music swells, the spotlights focus center-stage, and the audience of 4,000 who have lined up for many hours in advance takes their seats for the annual Masquerade costume show.

Why is it called a Masquerade and not simply a costume contest? Because it's more than just posing on stage: it's about portraying characters too, a show full of spectacle, beauty, awe, comedy, light-saber battles, and song and dance, an event where you never know what's going to happen next. The Masquerade proves that among Comic-Con's attendees are plenty of amazing talents with creativity worth showcasing. More than a few times, contestants go on to professional costuming careers.

The Comic-Con Masquerade is an event in the style of a talent competition, with a master of ceremonies, a panel of guest judges, and impressive awards in various categories. The large, elevated stage has theater-style lighting and four giant high-definition video screens providing great close-up views gathered by multiple cameras. The audience fills Ballroom 20 to capacity, and over 2,000 more people watch the show on large video screens in the nearby Sails Pavilion and other ballrooms.

Some entries are solo costumes, while others are groups with a shared theme. Many are re-creations from movies, TV, anime, computer games, history, and of course comic books, but some completely original designs are presented as well. All costume genres are welcome, but no purchased or professionally sourced ones allowed. It's a celebration of imagination and craftsmanship, and fun is the main objective!

CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE PDF CONTAINING THE OFFICIAL ENTRY FORM AND RULES. Because the number of entries is limited, you should apply for a contestant slot as soon as possible. All slots are usually filled far in advance of the convention, so don't wait. Photographers who wish a spot at the Masquerade Photo Op stage, where the contestants pose after their stage presentations, should also write the coordinator ahead of time to request a reserved spot, as they fill up early as well.

The master and mistress of ceremonies will again be the very entertaining five-time Hugo Award-winning artists and writers Phil Foglio and Kaja Foglio, who for many years have created, published, and contributed to a variety of comics, art, and games in the science fiction and fantasy genres through their company Studio Foglio.

Impressive Comic-Con awards, featuring beautiful Olympics-style Comic-Con Masquerade medallions will be presented in categories of Best in Show, Judges' Choice, Best Re-Creation, Best Original Design, Best Workmanship, Best Presentation, Most Beautiful, and Best Young Fan.

In addition, the following companies and organizations will be generously donating their own awards to outstanding costumes. Others will be joining this list as the convention approaches:

• Frank And Son Collectible Show, of the City of Industry, CA, will present to the entry they deem the audience favorite an impressive crystal trophy and $1,000 cash.


• DC Comics representatives will present a special DC Direct collectible valued at $300 to the finest costumed entry portraying a DC Comics character or characters.


• Lucasfilm Ltd. will award the best Star Wars costumers with fabulous items from their Licensing Archives. The finest entry from the Star Wars galaxy will be selected by a Lucasfilm representative to receive special limited-edition collectibles.


• Century Guild, the company offering "the finest art of three centuries", will present $200 cash, or $400 credit, at their exhibit hall booth to the entry they select as best portraying the elements of Archaic Technologies or Art Nouveau.


• Sideshow Collectibles: Do you think your costume entry into this year's Masquerade will elicit lots of "ooo's" and "ahhhh's" from the crowd? If that's the case, you'll be in the running to win a $350 gift card from Sideshow Collectibles for use on their website!


• The David C. Copley Award for Most Innovative Costume: Oscar-nominated costume designer and David C. Copley Center director Deborah Nadoolman Landis, costume designer of Raiders of the Lost Ark, An American Werewolf in London, Michael Jackson's Thriller, plus many other films, and UCLA's David C. Copley Chair in Costume Design, will present to her favorite entry the UCLA Copley Center for The Study of Costume Design Award of $250 cash, plus a copy of her beautiful book: Dressed: A Century of Hollywood Costume Design, (cover price $75).


• Anime Pavilion will present, to what they choose as their favorite anime costumes in the show, $150 booth credit for their first choice, $50 credit for runner-up, and $40 credit to the best Young Fan entry.


• Anime Social Scene will award $100 cash + prizes to the best single or group anime presentation in the Masquerade. Also, TME That's My Entertainment will award $100 to the best Movie Representation, plus $100 for the People's favorite, from their parent company, The Testmarket Evolution.