Official Rules
These rules apply to the Nordic Cosplay Championship final held at NärCon Sommar. Each qualifier competition is governed by the NCC qualifier representative of their country. They may choose to impose rules specific to the country or qualifier competition.
General Rules
Travel and lodging
Travel expenses for contestants and judges are covered by the NCC and the participating countries' events that host the qualifier rounds. The NCC also provides accommodation for all contestants and their assistant as well as the judges and one qualifier representative from each country.
The representatives
There is no age limit for competing in the Nordic Cosplay Championship final. However, in order to represent their countries, the contestant must be either a citizen of the country or otherwise considered a resident there.
Contestants' assistants
Each contestant will be allowed to bring one assistant to the event. The NCC will not pay for the assistant's travel expenses. The NCC will however provide the assistant with entry and accommodation for the event. If the contestants wants to bring more assistants, that is perfectly fine, but they or their assistants' must cover all expenses, including admission to the event, on their own.
Judges' assistants
Judges are also allowed to bring one assistant. The NCC will not pay for the assistant's travel expenses. The NCC will however provide the assistant with entry for the event and offer the chance to upgrade the judge's room to a double-room. Expenses from the upgrade will be paid by the assistant or judge.
Judging
Judges
The panel will consist of judges from the NCC's founding countries: Denmark, Finland, Norway and Sweden. The qualifier representative from each country will select their respective judge. The panel may also include international judges chosen by NärCon.
Prejudging
Before the final, the contestants will meet the judges for prejudging. Contestants will attend the prejudging in their full costume and with their hand-held props. Presenting the costume without wearing it is prohibited. Each contestant has an allotted judging time of 15 minutes.
During the prejudging, judges may ask questions about the construction of the costume. They may also touch the costume after asking and receiving permission from the contestant. Judges may document, record and photograph the costumes for use in the judging. The judges may post the material publicly only after asking and receiving permission from the contestant
Performance
The performances will be judged live during the show. Judges will score all contestants on their performance. Each judge's points are hidden from the other judges. When all scores have been set after the last performance, the highest and lowest score for each contestant will be eliminated and the remaining summed up to determine the preliminary placement of each contestant. The judges will walk away from the show for a short while and be presented with the scores and placements for the top contestants. In case anything needs to be rectified, during this short period the judges have the possibility to change their scores to finalize the results. The points awarded by each judge are still hidden.
Tie Breaker
If there is a tie for first, second or third place, the total sum of points, including those previously eliminated, will serve as the first tie breaker. Should a second tie breaker be required, the points from the guest judge will serve as the second tie breaker. Should there still be a tie, the guest judge will decide who wins the tie.
Points
Contestants will be judged on their craftsmanship, performance and the overall likeness to the character.
Craftsmanship: 10 points
- How the costume is constructed, the quality of the visible craftsmanship
- The stage props will not be judged in craftsmanship. This also goes for the assistants costumes.
- Accuracy of the details, proportions and fit
Performance: 10 points
- Performance content: is the performance understandable, how is the arc of the performance handled, how well it represents and suits the source material and character
- Parody is allowed and will be judged on how cleverly it parodies the source material and character
- Stage presentation: Use of sounds, music, stage and use of stage props.
- Stage props will not be subject to prejudging, but the visual impact and how they are used to either further the story or create atmosphere is included in stage presentation
- Lighting and video will not be subject to judging.
- Stage expression: how the contestant acts out their performance with their body and their face
- Use of assistant: does the assistant draw too much of the focus from the contestant, is the assistant used without a point
- See rules regarding performance below
Likeness: 5 points
- How well the contestant embodies the spirit of the character through their costume and performance
- How the costume is constructed, the quality of the visible craftsmanship
Performance
Length
Each contestant must prepare a performance which should be between 90 and 150 seconds long. The time of the performance can not be longer than 150 seconds, can not be less than 90 seconds, but can be of any length in between 90–150 seconds.
Backdrop
The NCC will create a video for the digital backdrop based on the contestants wishes. The contestant may instead make their own backdrop. The contestant's backdrop will be subject to changes following communication between the NCC and the contestant. The contestant must be available to answer questions regarding their performance in order to make the background video as good as possible.
Contestants may use the following
- Music
- Microphones for live dialogue
- Background video
- Pre-recorded dialogue
- Stage props
- Hand held props, such as swords or small items
On Stage
- It is prohibited to take the performance outside of the stage, e.g. to the area between stage and audience. Use of possible catwalks is allowed, as is running off stage at the end of the performance.
- Stage props must be lightweight enough for 2-4 people to carry up on stage.
- Use of fire, water or scattering of items requires permission from the stage crew. This must be acquired ahead of submitting information about the performance.
- Contestants should be able to walk in their cosplay without outside assistance. Stage helpers are allowed to help contestants on to the stage in case of steps or steep surfaces.
- Contestants may use one or more assistants in their performances.
Assistants
Assistants may:
- Wear a costume
- Not wear a costume if they so choose
- Appear on stage
- Be on stage for the entire length of the performance
- Have speaking/singing lines
Assistants may not:
- Have a role equal to the contestant in the performance. It should be 100% obvious who is the contestant and who is the assistant.
All performances are subject to changes asked by the production if there is a concern for safety of the audience, crew or contestant. The production will review all performances after receiving all related files and plans, and will be contact each contestant regarding their performance.
Costumes and hand-held props
Outside of official NCC activities, your costume and hand-held props are subject to the rules of the event.
The Costume
Costumes must be constructed by the contestants themselves and contestants are expected to be able to give an account of how all details of their costume were made. Store-bought and modified costumes are not allowed.
Contestants are allowed to compete with the same costume they qualified with, but not a costume they’ve participated in an earlier NCC final with.
Costumes must be finished on the day the contestant arrives at the venue. Repairs to any damage from travelling is allowed after arriving.
The Character
The character must be a fictional character from a published source. Published pictures of the character must exist for judges’ reference. Original designs and characters are not allowed.
It is recommended that the character is part of a story/narrative. If a character from an illustration, painting or the likes is chosen where the character doesn’t have an expressed backstory, personality or the likes the judges will only be able to judge the likeness-category in the performance.
It is recommended that the character isn’t a genderbend version or a gjinka/human version of a character if this particular version of the character is not part of the original published source. If the contestant still chooses to do this, the judges will only be able to judge the craftsmanship-category.
Props
Realistic props or replica weapons are allowed only on stage and during official NCC photoshoots. They must be kept hidden or stored safely in areas designated by event staff during all other times. When carried to and from stage and photoshoots, such props should be kept covered and sealed safely.