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The not-so-secret life of Singapore’s crossplayers

These men defy social norms in the name of cosplaying by putting on makeup, wigs and posing in elaborate costumes.

• By Ray Yeh
• Posted 10 Dec 2016 08:00
• Updated 10 Dec 2016 13:10

Crossplayers from Singapore: (from left) Date, Chee See Jay and Lee Hongzhu. (Photo: Ray Yeh)








SINGAPORE: Putting on elaborate makeup, wigs and costumes is all part of the experience of cosplay to transform into one's favourite anime character. But the transformation is perhaps more extreme for a small but growing number of "crossplayers" - or cosplayers who cross dress.

Date (pronounced dah-teh) is one of them. The avid anime and gaming fan started out impersonating only male characters, but soon felt that he should not restrict himself since most of his favourite anime characters are female.

“Naturally as a guy you will love a female character, that's very normal,” he says candidly. “You want to bring them to life. I don't care if it's male or female. I just do it.”
Photographs of Date in his crossplay best are fodder for banter at his family's Chinese New Year gatherings. The 26-year-old hates the festive celebrations and would volunteer for holiday shifts at work but in his absence, his mother would delightfully whip out her smartphone and proudly show everyone his latest Facebook photos.



Date, who made clear he is not gay or confused about his gender identity, says his first attempt at crossplaying was in 2010 and it was such a bad experience that he almost quit the hobby. “The criticisms I got, I can remember till today,” he recalls. “At that time my makeup was not that good yet. People would say: "Oh look, there's a gay there. Oh look, ah-kua (Hokkien expression for transvestite). Oh look, a ladyboy."
But he was determined not to let critics and bullies ruin his love for what he considers an art form. While he did stop crossplaying for a couple of years, he eventually “gave in” to his passion and made a comeback in 2013. “I still wanted to do a lot more. I still wanted to improve,” he says.

This time, he sought help from more experienced crossplayers like Lee Hongzhu who taught him better makeup techniques.





BORROWING MUM’S BRA
Hongzhu lives on the fourth floor of an old walk-up apartment with his parents and younger brother. The 27-year-old administrative executive is home alone. It is the weekend of the Anime Festival Asia and Hongzhu is excited. He has been preparing for the annual event for months, having attended every single edition since he began cosplaying six years ago.
His room is big but cluttered. Piles of clothes and costumes can be seen everywhere - on the rack, across the floor, on his bed. There is hardly any walking space. And on his desk, amongst the mess, sits a Brother sewing machine next to his fancy gaming computers. He takes a glance at the machine, now coated with a thin layer of dust. “I bought it two years ago to sew my own costumes, just simple things,” he says, “but I don't really use it anymore.”


Hongzhu in his bedroom. He lives in an old walk-up apartment with his parents and brother. (Photo: Ray Yeh)


Like Date, the former digital arts student makes no attempt to hide his hobby from the family. To improve his makeup skills, he watches tutorial videos on YouTube and does “trial and error” sessions at home.

Sometimes, he puts on his costume and makeup at home before attending an event. If the subject of cosplaying comes up in family conversations, Hongzhu keeps it casual. But his mother, who is in her mid-fifties, likes to tease him about it. “She laughs at my photos,” he says, “and she says that I look like one of her sisters.”

Hongzhu being touched up by Hana, a celebrity cosplayer from China at Anime Festival Asia. (Photo: Ray Yeh)


Three years ago, when she was doing housework, he walked up to her and made the unusual request of borrowing her bra. He had only just begun to crossplay then. His mother, completely unfazed, complied by getting him the bra, and even gave him a tip: Don’t stuff until too big, or it will look very weird.
“My mum actually is a bit different from other mums. She just wants me to be like those people who don’t get into trouble,” Hongzhu says. “As long as it’s not killing people, damaging property, that kind (of activity).”
He knows he is lucky to have accepting parents. But for some of his crossplaying friends, things can get pretty rough at home.





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