Hi, I'm Harry and I'm a non-binary cosplayer
Hi, my name is Sebastian and I am a non-binary cosplayer
Hi, I'm Charlie and I'm a non-binary cosplayer
Hi, my name is Ry and I'm a trans masc non-binary
cosplayer
Hi, I'm Taylor. I am trans-non-binary and
I am a non-binary cosplayer
I'm Tilda and I'm a non-binary cosplayer
Cosplay was one of the first spaces where
I could freely just dress up as a character
and as I started discovering 'hmm I'm not
what people thought that I was and people
told me that I was'  that space became even
more important to me to be able to just mess
around and even through using makeup to change
myself and go "hmm I actually like the way
that I look like this"
Cosplay really does help me to express my
gender identity. It informed those initial
steps to kind of discovering that there was
something more.
I felt more and more comfortable in like the
more masculine or stronger characters like
Zarya. It was definitely a major part of discovering
that it was there.
I've had quite a long gender journey and at
the start it was cosplay that helped.
I realised throughout cosplay - through cosplaying
both male and female characters - that I actually
feel a lot more comfortable when I'm not just
purely female.
Kind of giving me that license and that permission
to step outside of myself - for everyone it's
hugely instrumental in exploring gender and
identity.
It's something that a form of escapism for
me so when I'm in cosplay it does feel very
positive. It feels very freeing.
I have a lot of body dysphoria as well but
when I am in cosplay I feel I can look people
in the eyes and be like "hi, this is me."
I used to have long hair and I used to be
really femme because I thought that that was
the only way it was acceptable for me to look
and then I started playing Dragon Age and
came across Krem as the first trans man I've
ever seen in a video game and it meant so
much to me to see that was an option.
I don't feel confident a lot of the time when
I'm not wearing what I feel like I want to
wear but when I've got a costume on and I
get to be someone else and then slowly it's
actually made me be more myself.
Expressing your gender identity is scary;
it's challenging and, you know, for some people
can be very dangerous to do
The accepting
community that's grown up around cosplay
I don't know that there's anything else like
that out there.
I am feeling a lot more at ease and I feel
like I have a lot more support than when I
was just on my own.
People are so willing to just accept and learn
and grow in the cosplay community which you
don't always find anywhere else.
They're people who have shared experiences
and they know what you're going through and
they know what you're feeling and thinking
and it's... it's really special.
If you're worried that you're the only one
going through something, I assure you that
you're not.
Surround yourself with people who support
you. It always helps if you have someone to
discuss these things with and explore gender
issues together.
Don't feel like you have to know tomorrow
or in a year.
Like both things, cosplay and gender, it takes
time.
Don't be afraid to cosplay who you want to
cosplay. Don't let something as inconsequential
as gender and gender norms stop you from doing
what I want to do.
