Featured Cosplayer: Brandon Gilbert

Name: Brandon Gilbert

City: Toronto

Twitter: @BrandonoGilbert

Instagram: @brandonogilberto

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/OfficialBrandonGilbert

What was your first Cosplay Experience?

The first convention I ever attended was Anime North in 2014. I had never been to a con before but had been following a few cosplayers on Facebook (Kamui and Eve mainly) for a while before that and decided to finally check it out for myself. I had no idea how massive it was going to be, was pretty shocking. I remember pulling into the driveway heading to the parking lot and seeing the lines and crowds of people and just thinking to myself, “…Holy ****!!”. My suit ended up being quite a hit and lost count of how many times I was stopped by crowds of people to take pictures. I originally only had a ticket for one day of the con but it was just such a kickass time I ended up having to come back again for the extra day. Been hooked since then. Sorry wallet.

How long have you been Cosplaying?

One year. One action packed, crazy busy, nonstop fun year!

What is your favorite cosplay you have worn/created?

As of now I don’t have a ton of different outfits to choose from. I’m mainly known for my Symbiote Spider-Man (which was my first outfit) and my Spidey Whiteys. The ‘web diapers’ as some like to call it are rather… minimalistic to say the least in terms of cosplay. They just kinda happened last minute because I was tired of wearing the same suit everyday for conventions but ended up being pretty chuckle worthy. Love me some chuckles. I’ve also done a couple different Joker variations which were fun and a lot easier to deal with versus wearing a mask and having no pockets all day. I quickly learned that Spidey is not a con friendly choice. The things we suffer through for the sake of cosplay, I tells ya. I’ve had an Amazing Spider-Man 2 replica suit in the works for a while now. It isn’t even finished yet but I already know that’s GOING to be my favourite for sure so, that…

If you had unlimited resources, what Cosplay would you create?

If I had the time and money I would totally attempt a large scale mech of some sort… *cough* Hulk Buster *cough*

What advice would you offer others trying to break into Cosplay? Most of the time the biggest hurdle is just simply trying to pick who you want to be. Even for myself I had to debate over a bunch of options before I finally settled on Spidey as my first. That’s half the battle is just making up your mind but don’t need to rack your brain over it. Settle on one and you can always do more at a later time. Whatever you decide to go with just make sure you have fun with it. That’s what it all boils down to. That’s why we all do it. If you’re not having fun you’re doin it wrong!