Equipment:
2 Dance lights
2 'tree' set of 38 par cans (used mostly for extra dance lights)
5 56 PAR cans
4 64 PAR cans
1 Martin Freaky Light Board (with joystick follow spot & fog/strob controllers.)
2 Truss set ups. (Various sizes.)
12' x 30' Black stage curtain
30' x Extendable, strong scaffolding stage (Holds curtain up)
3 SM 57 Microphones
2 Sure Microphones
2 Mic Booms
1 MXL 3000 Condensior Mic
4 Ultimate Support, Speaker Stand tripods
12 On-Stage, Speaker Stand tripods
2 10' Stage poles
7 5' Stage poles
2 7' Stage poles
4 20' x 7' Stage Backdrops
2 7' x 7' Stage Siding (like pipe & drape but not)
2 EV stage system S12-2 Amplifiers (speakers)
2 (name?) Speakers
1 (name? - 2007 projector. new, nice.. vibrant. nuff said.)
1 Sunspark 7500 Extendable 74.8" Tripod (video cameras)
13" Orion television Monitor
Sony VX2100 Mini DV camcorder
Sony DSC-P8 Digital Still shot camera
3 Laptop computers loaded with software programs. (protools etc.)
2 Desktop computers dedicated souly to the cosplay zone with software
programs & Firewire plugins.
(And a Bazillion other things I've forgotten.)
Software Programs:
Protools (LE.) (Audio)
Sonar (Producer Edition) (Audio)
Audicity (Auido) (Yes, we use this to mix in sometimes. - Never record in this program..)
iTunes (Auido) (iPods, the essentual tool for our shows.)
Cakewalk (for Band performances - Sonar's backup) {for those old timers out there ;) }
Adobe Premiere Pro 2.0 (Video)
Avid (Video)
Final Cut Pro (Video)
Adobe CS2 (Photographs/Video)
Corel/Jasic Pro 8 (Photo)
Hundreds of hours are dedicated into what takes place
behind the conventions that we attend. Like most
cosplayers our costumes and props must be
painstakingly worked on, refurbished, stored, ironed,
pressed and maintained at all times.
This is where some of the similarity ends.
While most cosplayers will plan a skit a few months
or week in advance, prior to a convention, we are busy
planning the skit for the next year or more in advance.
This ties into what makes The Cosplay Zone so unique.
Apart from it's experienced backing. The Cosplay Zone's
productions can easily be taken from a three minute skit
into a two hour riveting performance.
Piles of scripts, ideas and story boards are stored and
maintained for future use.
A good 70% of what we have written is normally cut
out from our shortened performances. In various states
the audience has shorter or longer attention spans, this
normally playing into age or interest in the performance.
Our rule of thumb here is that; If someone who has never
seen nor heard of the characters you are performing as,
takes serious interest, laughs and enjoys themselves
throughout the entire performance, your good to go.
Otherwise, It needs to be revised.
Script Revisions...
A skit is easy enough to come up with. ..revising it to
be the correct length in time, make sense, remain
polished and entertaining may take any given amount
of time.
Story boarding...
All of our scripts turn into a story board at a early
point in the production for all new performances.
This serves to remind the choreographers the
correct marks and blocking ideas they may have
first had, since more then one script may be in
production at any given time. Seeing the
choreography prior to costume construction helps
the sewing crew to better fit costumes more
comfortably to their actors.
Example;
Riza: ( Extended spin kick low to the ground,
turning counter clockwise towards the
audience.) {This appearing to knock
'bad guy' from off his feet and onto his
bottom.} (Slow leg down slightly towards
contact with "Guy" and slide further
down, remaining with body weight centered,
using gun and arm support extended for
balance.)
Guy: (Pulls left leg up slightly, while moving arms
out and back, for correct gravity balance,
kicking backwards off heal, push weight down
center to slide back while lifting right leg up over
"Riza's" leg to avoided direct contact. Slide
backwards, landing on palm heels with elbows
bent for support. Roll backwards with an added
slide from pushing off with palm heels to execute
an airborne fall.)
With all of this movement seems but be sewn in tightly and
costumes must be fully function able so not to choke or
restrain the cast at any point in their performance. because of
scenes like these the choreography & blocking coordinators
along with the leads in sewing must work closely with each
other and the actors having them try costumes on before
sewing can take place, to properly fit the costume to each
actor with allowance for inches and give needed in various
areas of the costume so that scenes like above can be
performed with comfort and ease.
Choreography & Blocking..
Countless hours are spent walking through a scripts moves.
Glomps, tackles, martial arts and falls must be performed
hundreds and thousands of times in order for them to be
safely and effectively performed.
Sewing..
Cosplay being the core of "The Cosplay Zone," puts
great time into dissecting a character's clothing piece
by piece. Looking for hidden pockets, or how
something may be attached.
"Where did they pull THAT out from??" is often a
question we ask each other and although the character
my never show up in a single shot of how something like
hidden weapons may be attached, it is our job to make
it do able and realistic, not just fastening some Velcro
under our arm and sticking a plastic weapon there.
Normally conversations over how to make a costume,
entertain such questions we look at like; "Well, if a military
uniform from Fullmetal Alchemist has a flap in the front,
how and why is it there? what is it's usefulness and how
can we correctly recreate this without sewing a flap down
and onto the costume? Are there more hidden buttons
under that thing then we really see??" After weeks or even
months of dissecting a character, the costume is then slowly
started. After we have the idea how to tie in real life function
ability and not loose or add anything to the costume that
should or should not be there.
Sewing sessions on our days off have been known to run
thirteen hours, with sewing also taking place on a near daily
basis after work, running around 5 or 6 hours. Props are
worked on when time allows, normally fitting in somewhere
between sewing sessions.
Cast & crew contact..
Most of our contact with each other is done over the
phone vs. the Internet. Much of this attains to
multitasking our time allowance. Having cast and crew
meetings over the phone frees your hands up to for
sewing or prop making. While discussing certain moves
to perform on stage, it is easier to be on a phone with a
headset or speaker so that the moves may be tested out
first by the choreography coordinators where as it is
harder to keep looking back at a computer screen in a
small desk area while testing out a new idea.
When enough of us are free we be sure to get
together for more then sewing. Normally having
a small BBQ party and script reading that deals
in going over and rehearsing the script from top
to bottom for hours at a time. Commonly working
on key points in a script.
Actors involved in executing a more difficult move
on stage, such as tackles, falls, fighting and glomps
will spend several more hours until the moves are
flawless with safety being our number one concern.
Everything is practiced in slow motion slowly building
our way up to a fast full move with precise timing and
silent signals from actor to actor.
On Stage accidents...
When on stage with such moves as explained
above and earlier, our actors have certain looks
or head movements that will be given to one
another when they are qued and ready for the
move to be made.
This helps keep all actors safe with no surprises
or poorly timed actions. However, This does not
insure an accident will never happen. When and
if accidents do happen, (ex.; broken or torn back nails
(on hands/feet), landed wrong (but can still walk), or
contained small bleeding from something else having
gone wrong.) Our actors work hard to remain fully in
character and will continue to carry out their
performance. Tending to an injury immediately once
off stage. Goals here are to keep the audience unaware
of anything ever having gone wrong so not to interfere
with the overall performances.
Don't think it will never happen.