'Is she really a girl?' What people think of cosplayer XiaoYukiko doesn't bother her
XiaoYukiko cosplays as Genshin Impact's Hu Tao.
PHOTO: Instagram/XiaoYukiko
PUBLISHED ONJuly 28, 2023 7:56 AMByKhoo Yi-HangCosplay brings fiction into reality — and sometimes that's not easy for some to accept.
XiaoYukiko, 23, shared her experience cosplaying in public eye in an interview with AsiaOne at the Anime Festival Asia (AFA) Creators Super Fest on Sunday (July 23).
"I was at this cosplay event [in Thailand] as a guest, and we had a photo shoot where all the photographers were welcome to take a photo," the full-time cosplayer — also known as Xiaoyu — shared.
"I had this video of me going about online and people were questioning, 'Is she really a girl?'"
The Singapore permanent resident, who's been cosplaying for almost six years, is most certainly female.
She was born in China and moved to Singapore as a child.
Although some members of the public raised doubts about her gender, Xiaoyu laughed it off.
"I think it's very funny, it's a common thing in cosplay, because it's not just girls cosplaying as girls, but also guys as well — and sometimes these guys really look like girls," she explained.
These guys are known as "traps", a common trope in anime culture where a male crossdresser can be dressed so convincingly that he's easily mistaken for a female, Xiaoyu added.
Laughing, she said that this has caused some people to become 'traumatised' and doubtful about the gender of some cosplayers.
A 'weird' hobby?
Taking a more serious tone, she also shared that the public perception of cosplay has historically been relatively negative, with people viewing cosplay as a "weird hobby" and questioning why anyone would want to get into it.
Her family wasn't any different, either.
Xiaoyu said: "They didn't know about cosplay when I started. They asked, 'Why are you wearing a weird costume and putting on a wig?'
"They felt it was weird, but as time went on I explained to them what cosplay is about, and why I like some anime series a lot."
For example, anime that really touches her heart makes her want to cosplay as those characters, and she communicated that emotion to her family.
"That's when they really started to understand my hobby," she said.
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Public perception of cosplay is also gradually changing to become more accepting of those who share the same hobby as her, Xiaoyu said.
Attributing this shifting paradigm to social media and TikTok, she also said that attitudes towards anime have also been improving.
She added: "I feel cosplay and anime have become more and more mainstream, so more people are joining this hobby, and this in turn actually makes cosplay more widely accepted."
Starting out cosplay
Although she's at home in front of cameras now, Xiaoyu wasn't always so confident while cosplaying.
Her first attempt at cosplay was for Anime Festival Asia back in 2016, where she dressed up as Kuriyama Mirai from Beyond the Boundary (2013), an anime series by Kyoto Animation.
[embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uNti4Bf2t-c[/embed]
Although she was cosplaying with secondary school friends, Xiaoyu wasn't too comfortable with getting attention at the time.
"I was so scared," she recalled. "Because it was the first time I went out with a costume and people were staring at me.
"But as time went on I got used to it. I'm just going to do what I'm going to do, I'm not affecting you, so I just do what I've got to do and just be myself."
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Xiaoyu had gotten into anime through her sister, who drew art when she was younger.
However, her sister had to put her passion for anime on the backburner in order to maintain her grades, especially since her sister was living in China and had to deal with the notoriously stressful gaokao, the Chinese university entrance examination.
Xiaoyu, who lives in Singapore, didn't need to take gaokao, which she's extremely thankful for.
Looking back at her past, she also shared how she felt knowing that her cosplay's improved by leaps and bounds since 2016.
In particular, her favourite character to cosplay is Ganyu from popular MiHoYo game Genshin Impact.
"I've improved a lot since back then, and that makes me very happy.
"It tells me that I've been working towards the goal of making my cosplay better, from the way I style my wig to my makeup and my poses. I'm really happy to see that progress."
While she poses in front of cameras with ease, Xiaoyu however still feels nervous on stage.
"I really feel I still have a long way to go… there's a lot to learn from everyone, not just cosplayers who are more senpai (senior in Japanese) than me, but also some of the younger cosplayers too."
Cosplay and community
While cosplay is an outlet for her love for anime, it's also a hobby that means much more for Xiaoyu.
"I feel like cosplay is about bringing my favourite character to life," she began. "When I'm cosplaying I can talk to different people, and maybe these people like my character as well — so there's this communication within the community as well.
"You can share your love for this character and anime series with everyone else who understands, which isn't something you can get in school or everyday life."
When she met fans during her meet and greet at the AFA Creators Super Fest, she was over the moon.
Xiaoyu said animatedly: "They were all very excited and happy to see me, and I was too. It's because of their support that I'm able to be here now and cosplay full-time, so I'm really grateful to all my friends who've been with me since the beginning."
Xiaoyu also added that she'll only stop cosplaying when she's grown out of her love for anime — and that won't happen any time soon.
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khooyihang@asiaone.com
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