Madman National Cosplay Championship Grand Finalist Interview - Christie Lee

ANN|AU: Tell us a bit about yourself and your cosplay history, how long have you been cosplaying? What was your first cosplay? Where was your first debut?

Christie: My name is Christie Lee. I was born in New York and moved to Sydney in 1991. I just graduated from University of Sydney studying the Bachelor of Design Computing. I've considered myself to have been cosplaying for two and a half years. I got into cosplay for the first time in 2006 Sydney Animania. It was just an overnight job of Saya from the anime/manga called "Black Cat". But then I got more interested in 2007 Animania and decided to make my whole first costume for 2008. At SMASH! I cosplayed as Rikku from the PS2 game "Kingdom Hearts 2".

ANN|AU: What did you see in cosplay that made you try it out and get into it?

Christie: What pulled me into cosplaying was how someone could look so similar and cool dressed up as a fictional character! And they looked like they had so much fun, apart from walking into walls, wig malfunctions and tripping over their skirts and heels. I was so amazed and awestruck by what people of my age could make and think of within fandoms and characters I loved. I really loved seeing how much a person would put so much dedication and work into making their costumes and bring a character into life. It's Awesome.

ANN|AU: How costly have your cosplays been and do you compromise on some quality for cheaper cost?

Christie: At first it didn't start as much but over the two years it turned from zero dollars to a near two hundred dollars, not including the materials for props/weapons. It's quite frightening to see the rate increase so dramatically and I can only fear it would only continue to grow till I retire from being a cosplayer. But there are times which I do prefer to lower my standards on fabrics to overcome money problems. Ah, the recession can be so annoying at times like these.

ANN|AU: Have you ever given up on a cosplay idea after having started it? Why?

Christie: There has been only a few which I have given up on and the reasons are usually procrastination; too much time passing since I've started and sadly the fandom getting too popular and my inspiration and confidence begins to decrease from seeing others cosplaying the same character as I am.

ANN|AU: What prompted you to enter the Madman National Cosplay Championship?

Christie: Honestly, I didn't even know the prizes for the competition when I entered. I can't deny that there was some "peer pressure" to enter this competition, but at the end it was my decision to enter pretty much for fun, self-motivation and love for Code Geass! And by the end of the competition ... well, as you can see, I ended up getting alot more than I bargained.

ANN|AU wishes to thank Christie for her time and to the team at Madman Entertainment for being so cooperative. Follow us on our next interview as we bring you the rest in the coming weeks before the competition!