...the Cosplay finalists

Filipina cosplayers in STGCC finals

By MAUREEN MARIE BELMONTE

August 19, 2011

Manila Bulletin

Filipinos Stephanie Sumbe (L) and Mary Grace Roldan (R) are set to compete in Singapore cosplay contest on Aug. 21 (Photos courtesy of their Facebook Fanpages)

MANILA, Philippines – Unlikely Pinay cosplayers Mary Grace Roldan and Stephanie Sumber were two of the eight finalists in this year's Singapore Toy, Game and Comic Convention (STGCC) Cosplay Competition, one of the biggest cosplay events in Asia.

As reported by abs-cbnNEWS.com’s Aug. 18, report, Roldan, an accountant whose cosplay name was Kawaimace and Sumbe whose cosplay name was Nikki is a grade 2 teacher will be flying to Singapore on Friday to prepare for the competition to be held on Aug. 21 at the Suntec Convention Center, Singapore.

Asked how she got into cosplay, Roldan replied "Dati attendee lang ako sa cosplay events. Nakita ko 'yung creativity nila, skills, tapos in one event naisip ko kaya ko rin 'yun."

In a taped interview posted on Cosplay Network Philippines’ official Facebook account, Roldan shared that she discovered her knack for cosplay in 2007.

Also a photography enthusiast, Roldan shared that she owns about six costumes, including outfits of Lime from “Saber Marionette,” Witchblade from Witchblade comics and female predator from “Predator.”

 

“Yung mga costumes ko mostly pinapagawa ko, pero yung mga small details pinapagawa ko na lang,” Roldan shared.

Asked what her favorite costume are, she replied, “Favorite ko si female predator kasi gawa siya sa mga recycled materials. Mga karton, mga balikbayan box, mga  old Styrofoam na pinulot lang sa mga nagcoconstruction. Tapos paper mache lang siya na very unique.”

Sumbe, for her part, related to abs-cbnNEWS.com that she was inspired to do cosplay by Amane Misa, a fictional character in Tsugumi Ohba’s manga-turned-anime then film series, "Death Note."

"I really like Amane Misa, so I wore her clothes," she said. As to why she's into cosplay, she quipped, "I find self-fulfillment in cosplay."

The two tied in the first place under the individual category of anime channel, Hero TV’s Face Off cosplay contest last year.

The grand winner in this year's STGCC cosplay competition will take home 1,000 Singapore dollars (or about P35,260).