Giwaku Interview
Who are you?
So I’m Amelia Nestler, 22 years old and from Austria
How did you come up with your cosplay name Giwaku?
My Cosplay name Giwaku was my long time internet name because back then when I was super young I didn’t want to use my real name. Giwaku is a original soundtrack from my favourite Anime “Higurashi No Naku Koro Ni”
What was yout first cosplay?
My first Cosplay was Hatsune Miku – Matryoshka Version
How did you get into cosplay, and how long have you been doing it?
First got to know it by seeing pictures on the internet and my sister got me my Hatsune Miku wig as a present. But I really got into the scene thanks to a school friend who went with me to conventions in Vienna. Been doing this hobby since 2011
Favourite cosplay you’ve done so far?
My favourite Cosplay definitely was Mei from Overwatch. I felt very confident in it and I love to wear something where I did put so much work into it
Any advice for beginner cosplayers, or people wanting to get into cosplaying?
To all the beginners I want to say DON’T COMPARE YOURSELF TO OTHERS. I think especially beginners who don’t have much experience or money to create the greatest cosplays shouldn’t compare themself to other cosplayers. We always have to remember ourselfs that cosplay is not a competition but a Hobby or a passion.
How do you go about choosing which cosplays to make and wear?
Usually only two steps: First step is the character itself. Do I like that character? Am I agreeing with what he /she is doing in the game/show etc? And the second step for me personally is if it would remotely fit my body type. I’m not only cosplaying plus size characters but for a person like me who is tall and big and I do have a mature face, I would feel weird cosplaying a loli character. Oh yeah, and I tend to love cosplaying characters who got a lot of small details, jewelry, glitter etc. I love detailwork SO much
Are there any projects you’re working on that you want to share with us?
Sadly, since my normal life is pretty rough on me at the moment I’m not working on something. But when I get back on track I’ll work on a Love Live Character called Nozomi in a very detailed and cute traditional version. If I could make Cosplay into my living I guess I would have 4-5 projects per month. But let’s see what the future brings
You’ve done several cosplays of Mei from Overwatch. What drew you to cosplaying her?
Before I even got to know the game, some friends told that I look pretty much like her. Later when I got to know her/ her backstory and tried the game (on a friends account) I pretty much got hooked on her. I love her design and she’s all in all a very lovely and strong character. And after “Rise and Shine” came out, I started loving her even more
You’ve also done Other Mother from Coraline. Can you tell us how you made her cosplay, especially the buttons she has on her eyes?
The Eyes for the Other Mother Cosplay are something I usually don’t recommend to people because I simply took very huge buttons and glued them on the top of my eye with lashglue. So I was still able to see when I opened my eyes a tiny bit. But better be carefull so that you won’t get glue on your eye
You’ve also dome regular Bowser and Bowsette. Do you have a preference between those two cosplays?
Definitely Bowser. Love the character itself and creating and designing the outfit by myself was so much fun. Bowser is someone precious to me because even tho he’s the villian, he is such a cute person (especially in Paper Mario N64). Bowsette is a nice concept but especially all the sexualising is just pretty disturbing for me.
Can you tell us more about how you made the Bowser cosplay?
The Bowser Cosplay is filled with Blood, Sweat and Tears. I was designing and drawing it months before actually starting the cosplay. Sewing the actual suit wasn’t the biggest problem, but creating the shells and horns was exhausting, since I’ve never crafted anything like this before and I wanted my Shell to be a backpack too, since it’s always important to have some pockets at a convention. My best friend helped me with this and together we made one back- and two shouldershells out of a yoga matt, powerglue and leather.
A large number of your cosplays require make-up. How much work do you have to put in, making sure they look as good as possible?
Make-up is in my opinion the most important thing on a cosplay. Changing the face, the colour of the face, the shape etc is the true transformation for a character. So it usually takes about 2-3hours when I do my makeup properly for a cosplay.
What’s the cosplay scene like in Austria?
When you first step in into the scene it is a really warm and lovely community, because you finally find other nerds you can relate to, who got the same hobby and are really funny and quirky with you. But I have to admit once you’re deeper down the rabbit hole there is a lot of drama going around and a lot of shaming and cold-heartness. Of course I sadly don’t know much about the cosplay scenes in other countries. The only word that comes into my mind when someone asks me to describe the austrian cosplay community is: cold, cold-hearted and distant.
If someone wanted to do a cosplay collaboration with you, what would be the best way for them to reach out?
Writing me, asking me or just tagging me in a picture saying “Let’s cosplay this together” is enough to reach out on me.
Any group cosplays you’d want to do (eg Mystery Inc, Sailor Scouts, Avengers, X-Men, etc)?
I would love to be in a Love Live Group one day
Which cosplayer would you love to work with?
There are a lot. For example Broken Wonderland Cosplay, Lunarquest, Anzujaamu and I’d love to work one day with american cosplayers and get to know more
Are there any cosplayers you think deserve more attention/coverage?
Vanlesca Cosplay on Instagram is definitely someone who should be known better. She is extremely pretty and her persoanlity is so loveable. I really hope she could make a living out of cosplay one day, I’m so excited everytime I see a new outfit of hers!
Where can we find you online (social media etc)?
Facebook, Twitter, and Deviantart. On every social media page my name is Giwaku or Giwaku33