A couple of weeks ago, I attended Copenhagen Gaming Week, which is a brand new gaming-oriented convention in Copenhagen, Denmark. I was really impressed by how well everything was run given it was the first year of the event.

I attended as an invited guest and judged the Novice Cosplay Contest on Saturday and had a panel on Sunday. I think it was really great that they had both a novice and an expert show, since I remember my first time competing and it’s quite intimidating having never tried it before and competing against all the pros. The novice competitors all did great and brought some really great cosplays to the stage – and there were both self-crafted cosplays that were pre-judged and also an opportunity for those with purchased cosplays to show them off on stage.

We arrived friday already, and saw a bit of the event on the first night. There were not as many visitors, but it was also after work, so we didn’t expect a packed hall. We had time to see much of the venue and to talk to some of the booth holders, which was really nice. I also got to let down my hair and do a little Rapunzel twirl.

Saturday was for me mostly dedicated to pre-judging and the show itself. Although it was a packed day with not that much spare time, the organizers did a really good job keeping the time schedule on track and I really appreciated that.

After the pre-judging, I went to see Zibartas‘ panel on LEDs and even did a little assistance, as I was wearing my druid, which he helped out on the electronics for.

Sadly, just as I had a moment to take a break and walk around, I got some bad news from home – one of my cats had to go to the emergency vet. It threw me off, but the organizers were attentive and helped me out to get a little break. I definitely overreact when it comes to my cats, but they are very important to me, and I can’t bear when they are unwell – especially if I’m not there to help.

But the show must go on, and so it did – after our break, we went to the stage and the Novice show kicked off. It was very well planned and it seemed to go without a hitch, at least as seen from the Judge’s table. After that, there was a short interlude where we made our final descision on the winners, and then it was the prize ceremony. All the participants and my co-judges, Trine K and Mirazie  were just great, and below I’ve added some photos of them all and of the contest winners.

The contest pretty much concluded saturday for us, and we went back to the hotel to relax and get some food.

Sunday it was an early start for me, as my panel was at 10:15 already. I was surprised to see a decent turnout, even that early in the morning. My panel was about Cosplay Materials, so it was mostly for beginners, and they had some good questions as well.

Straight after my panel, I had a little interview with TV GLAD, a Danish news channel run by people with functional impairment. They specifically asked the organizers if they could speak with me, and I was really honored. I have been interviewed before by their colleagues from Esbjerg and I was very impressed by how good the result was, so of course I said yes. Unlike many other national news outlets who have interviewed me in the past, TV GLAD always asks relevant questions and they have put time and effort into research beforehand, which really makes a big difference.

The rest of the day, I spent exploring the booths together with our two helpers, Valerie and Bjarke and co-guests WeaponSmith Cosplayer and Villanya Cosplay.

Sadly, I missed out on the Expert cosplay show, because I had to head home to pick up our cats as they were still sick, but I have been told that it was also great.

All in all, I had a nice time at the event. My only hope for future is longer opening hours – I felt like it was not enough time to see everything and talk to everyone. I hope I’ll be able to come back again some time.

Sunday it was an early start for me, as my panel was at 10:15 already. I was surprised to see a decent turnout, even that early in the morning. My panel was about Cosplay Materials, so it was mostly for beginners, and they had some good questions as well.

Straight after my panel, I had a little interview with TV GLAD, a Danish news channel run by people with functional impairment. They specifically asked the organizers if they could speak with me, and I was really honored. I have been interviewed before by their colleagues from Esbjerg and I was very impressed by how good the result was, so of course I said yes. Unlike many other national news outlets who have interviewed me in the past, TV GLAD always asks relevant questions and they have put time and effort into research beforehand, which really makes a big difference.

The rest of the day, I spent exploring the booths together with our two helpers, Valerie and Bjarke and co-guests WeaponSmith Cosplayer and Villanya Cosplay.

Sadly, I missed out on the Expert cosplay show, because I had to head home to pick up our cats as they were still sick, but I have been told that it was also great.

All in all, I had a nice time at the event. My only hope for future is longer opening hours – I felt like it was not enough time to see everything and talk to everyone. I hope I’ll be able to come back again some time.