Cosplayer Interview: Marie Grey
This week’s featured cosplayer is the lovely Marie Grey! She is a city
girl from New York, who makes some pretty awesome outfits (some include gender
bending!). She is big into DC Comics, having cosplayed various characters like
Poison Ivy, Zatanna, and Black Canary. On the video game side of things, she
has done an INCREDIBLE Rule 63 of Auron from Final Fantasy 10 and more recent
the Splicer from Bioshock! Not only that, but she also does cosplay
photography!
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| Photo by Chou-wa Photography and Cosplay |
What
is your name?
Marie Grey
Where
are you from?
Brooklyn, NY
How
long have you been cosplaying?
Four and a half years, but I've only been making
my own costumes for a little over a year.
What
is your favorite cosplay you’ve made so far?
I loved the challenges I faced while creating
female Auron from Final Fantasy X. I wanted to make it a bit more feminine, but
still keep it as true to the original character. I learned a lot of new
techniques and made a lot of mistakes, but it was a great experience. My
favorite character of all that I've done, though, is Black Canary from Birds of
Prey, simply because she's my favorite comic book character of all time.
Are
there any upcoming outfits that you are able to share/tell?
I was working on the Injustice design for Wonder
Woman, but was really unhappy with how it was turning out. I've since been
working on classic Wondie, New 52 Poison Ivy, and Lois Lane from All-Star
Superman. Once those are all done, I'll be taking on the challenge of pleather
pleather pleather for my steampunk Catwoman to be debuted at New York Comic
Con.
How
did you get into cosplay?
I didn't even want to do it! A friend begged me
to go to New York Comic Con with her in 2009. I was really uncomfortable with
the entire ordeal, but I made some really great friends in the end...so then I
kept going and kept planning more costumes.
Including
cosplay, you also have a hobby of cosplay photography! How did you get into
doing something like that?
I took photography and other media classes in
high school. After having worked with so many wonderful photographers in the
past few years, I decided I wanted to take up the hobby again!
Who’s
your favorite video game character?
This is impossible to answer. I play so many different
video games each year that I'm just in love with everything. At the moment, I
love the cast of the first Bioshock game, as well as the cast of Borderlands 2.
Who’s
your favorite comic book character?
Black Canary from Birds of Prey. I loved how empowering
she is and I first started reading Birds of Prey, when Gail Simone started
writing it. It was one of my more vulnerable moments in life...the end of high
school and beginning of college. Everything about her personality was
everything I wanted to be.
What
was a memorable con moment? Worst con moment?
At Katsucon this past year, someone gifted me
fingerless Batman gloves because he knew how much I loved Batman. It was
heartwarming to see someone I barely knew (outside of the comments he left on
my page every now and again) thought of me and did something so nice.
I haven't had too many moments at conventions
that were particularly bad...which is pretty awesome!
Do
you have a favorite convention you go to/been to?
Katsucon! Katsucon! Katsucon! It's the con that
I'll go to every year no matter what.
What
advice would you offer to those that want to get into cosplay?
Just do it! If you're weary about creating
cosplays, commission one from a friend or local artist. If you want to take the
plunge in creating your own, buy a beginner sewing machine and start off with
simple things to practice with. When you finally feel like you have the hang of
it, pick a simple cosplay and get started. And when all else fails, there are
tutorials for almost EVERYTHING on YouTube.
What
is your favorite part of cosplaying as a character?
I make it a point to only cosplay characters I
really like, so it's not really a challenge. I'm drawn to female characters
that are independent and have a strong head on their shoulders, even if their
strength often finds them trouble. I like being able to take a photo or drawing
and turn it into a real-life thing. It's amazing to see the tiny pieces all
come together to make the big picture.
When
did you know you wanted to do something like cosplay as a hobby?
Meeting all the incredible people at conventions
with similar interests are really what draws me to it and keep me going. I love
the creative process of putting a cosplay together, but being able to share it
with fellow geeks is amazing!
Do you have other members of
your family who are also into games, comics? Or are you presently the only
“geek” in your family?
My parents owned an NES a bit before I was born. I grew up watching
them play Super Mario, Duck Hunt, Tetris, Zelda, and Donkey Kong. My mom read
Archie comics when she was younger, and got me into the habit of reading them
as well. As I got older, I just fell deeper into the geek world. My brother is
a big gamer now and I'm introducing my family to cosplay. They're even joining
me at New York Comic Con this year!
Picture:
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| Photo by Soulfire Photography
How did you make this outfit?
I was terrified to even start this. I really liked to Kotobukiya design and decided I'd make something similar to that. I found a bunny suit tutorial online and spent a good two or three hours drafting up a pattern. When I finally felt comfortable with all of the planning, I cut out my pieces, pinned them together, and just went with it. And then I messed up. A lot. It was the first time I ever had to sew a zipper and the portion near my butt looked really weird. I didn't want to start all over from scratch since everything else looked the way I wanted it to, so I did my best to fix what I could and decided to create a mini bustle skirt to cover anything else that didn't look perfect. After that, I just added some leaves and flowers throughout the wig and bodysuit.
How long did it take to complete it?
I actually managed to finish it pretty quickly. I think everything was done in a week.
|
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| Photo by M1 Photo |
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| Photo by Melancholy Cosplay Photography |
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| Photo by First Person Shooter |
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| Photo by P. Karpey Photography |
Conclusion:
Hopefully this gave a better idea on how awesome Marie is. Definitely
expect pictures of her when I FINALLY meet her at New York Comic Con this year!
If you want to follow more of her work or get to know her more:
