Self-proclaimed geek, recent college graduate and Philippine Cosplay "princess" Alodia Gosiengfiao is known for her chameleon good looks. This self-styled transformer dons boots and bazookas as readily as she does elfin ears and faerie sandals, with wigs at the ready.
"Cosplay," Gosiengfiao says, "is a combination of two words: 'Costume' and 'roleplay.'" A cosplayer assumes the role of a character from an "animé show, a video game, manga, comic series, or movies," complete with costumes, prosthetics, make-up and accessories. Cosplayers not only have to look like characters, they have to act like, sound like and essentially be the characters they portray down to the last giggle. Cosplay has been elevated into an art form and subculture in countries like Japan, the US and Europe, while in the Philippines, the popularity of cosplay has spiked in the last few years.
Like most cosplayers in the country, Gongsiengfiao got involved in cosplay out of a love for animé. Encouraged by her friends from an Internet fan forum called Animé Club, she entered her first cosplay contest in 2003 as Magic Gunner Rikku from the Final Fantasy X-2 game. She was the crowd favorite. Soon after, she and her sister Ashley appeared on the cover of Culture Crash 14 as Magic Gunner Rikku and Magic Gunner Yuna. She's since judged other cosplay contests and appeared in teen magazines, as well as being part of the Official Muse Guild for the Massive Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Game (MMORPG), Mu Online. She was also named endorser for Sega's beat game, Love and Berry. This year, she ranked 87th on FHM's 100 Sexiest Women in the World.
Gosiengfiao still stars in strikingly realistic cosplay photo shoots that become viral Internet hits, and she's acquired a devoted fanbase of anime and gaming enthusiasts. Her fans write her Wikipedia entries, put up Friendster sites, blog about her, check her website regularly for updates and flock to anime conventions and fan days hoping for that rare photo op and autograph.
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SPOT.ph chatted with Gosiengfiao about dating, wearing skimpy outfits, and what you need to wear to get her attention:
What keeps you busy these days?
Modeling, freelance art-related work, and cosplay events and conventions.
