I failed. Yet I LOL about it.

I'm talking about my application at Gameloft Philippines. The lead artist deemed my submission as not Gameloft material. Well, I can understand that. After all, there are really great artists out there who are miles better than I am. I admit that. And also, I'm just an art hobbyist anyway. There's no way I'd fit in.I mean, they're talking about starting a core group in the Philippines!

Well, I do hope that the lead artist, whoever he is, finds worthy people to make the cut and ultimately spawn a Gameloft Philippines. The company is just starting from scratch, and maybe if it were an already established company here in the country, my chances would have been slightly bigger. And at least sinubukan ko. Ganun lang naman talaga e. Pag di mo sinubukan, di mo makikita ang hinahanap mo.

No, this isn't going to let me down. I still have other opportunities anyway, like yung sa KORPHIL, and Convergys too. And I'm still not giving up on my dream of becoming a voice actor. Kelangan lang ng free time.

And so we leave it at that, and now I'm back to waiting for my start at Convergys. It's on September 15, and I'm still adjusting my sleeping schedule. Knowing na isa akong narcoleptic citizen who'd rather stay awake and in front of my PC (and just yesterday I started retro-gaming with my PS1), at isang linggo na lang and it's September, it's going to be a tough one. Not to mention that I'm preparing for our group cosplay presentation for October.

I wish myself luck. After all, wala namang ibang tao aside from myself ang magwi-wish ng good luck para sa akin e.

And so I post this blog and shut down this computer, because I'll take out the DVD-ROM from this CPU and install it on other computers so I could start reformatting and fast. XD

Ayun. Pati ako nadale rin nito. XD

Start:	Aug 17, '08
Location:	TBA

That's basically it.

So far our members are:

Ara » Pinky
Mhakkie » Shorty
Jennessy » Heat
Nyam » Frida
Jit » Robo-Z
Me » Gas-O
Gelo » Strike
Timmy » Kelly
Vlad » Hiro

We still need one more member. Sana may sumama pa.

THE W'S

What: Toys R Us Super Heroes Toy Launch
Where: Midtown Wing, Robinson's Place Manila
When: 12 July 2008, at around 1630 hours
Who: Optimus Prime, a random bystander, and some girls
Why: Optimus apparently got some crack
More What: It's actually me inside the OP suit :P



Random Bystander: *Points at Optimus Prime* "Uy, anak, si Spider-Man!"
Optimus: ("WTF!?")


TRANSCRIPT # 2:

Girl # 1: "Uy kuya Optimus, pwede pa-pic? :)"
Girl # 2: "Oo nga kuya! :D"
Optimus: *Nods in approval*
Girl # 1: "Yay! Tara, dali!"
Girls: "(insert fan girl screams here)"
Optimus: ("Whut!?") O_o

After the picture taking...

Girl # 2: "Kuya, pa-kiss! <3"
Optimus: ("O-kaaaaaay...") O_o *Bows down slightly*
Girl # 2: *Gives Optimus' helmet a smack*
Girl # 1: "Uy kuya, kami rin! <3"
Optimus: ("WHUT!?")
Girls: "(insert more rabid screams here)"



Alvin: (Still inside Optimus suit) "Sana ako na lang si Optimus..." T_T


Sorry, I just had to recall this experience. LOL

Props goes to Mark David Cerezo for the Optimus Prime costume I wore, and to Cybertron Philippines for the experience.

Amateur video taken from my cellphone. Sorry for the noises made by my family members.

A short gag reel featuring costripping Counter-Strike team. XD

Again, just see it for youself. XD

Just see for yourself: LOL

That's what happened yesterday when I went to Robinson's Place Manila in Ermita for the Toys R Us and Cybertron Philippines' Super Heroes toy launch.

I took part in the launch as sort of a mascot. Along with me was Kuya Gene, Carl, Zienta, Jemire, Ricky, and others who I wasn't able to ask for their names. At first, i didn't know what costume to wear, until one size fitted me; and so I became Optimus Prime for one day. It was my first experience to cosplay a mecha, and my first time to grow 8 more inches! XD Thanks Cybertron Philippines!

Aside from Optimus Prime, there's also Megatron, Hot Rod, Starscream, Soundwave, and Marvel's Hulk and Iron Man (the same costumes we saw in previous events).

The outfit was wearisome, especially on the shoulders. Also, in order to walk, I had to practically trample the floor, which was fun.

Just as we went outside the dressing room to wreak havoc (pun intended), we were instantly surrounded by the people: kids, teenagers, adults, parents, grandparents, school girls, foreigners, and babies.

The most notable among those people who had their pictures taken with me (as Optimus) was this certain group of girls. I think they were about age 16 to 18. They asked if they could take pictures with me; I nodded (because they wouldn't hear me talk anyway). After the picture taking, one of them asked me if I could bow down a little, and then when I did, she snatched a kiss on the cheek of the helmet! And after she did, her companions followed her example!

Boy, if only they did that even without me wearing the costume...LOL

Anyway, while inside the costume, I also got to perform some crazy antics, like trying enter the Toy R Us toy exhibit whose height of the arc is smaller than the Optimus costume. I was "bumping" my head against the arc, emphasizing its height. Then to start the antics, I bowed down as I entered the area...SUCCESS!

Then I roamed around the toy exhibit and loitered as a mascot would do. I also "promoted" the Transformers toy line by actually grasping one toy while in costume. (And there's no need to say that the people took photos of that pose too.) Then I attempted to exit, and there's also no need to say that I had to bow down yet again in order to do so. For crack's reason, The people outside applauded Optimus' susscessful attempt. LOL

For our hard labor, we were given a P500 compensation salary, and free drinks. Since we finished earlier than I expected, and I realized that Mall of Asia is just on the way home from Robinson's, I decided to stop by before I actually go home. The people at home don't know when I finished at Robinson's anyway.

Here are the inside-the-dressing-room photos we took using my cellphone camera. XD


And so I went with Kuya Gene to Mall of Asia to witness the cosplay competition at the 2nd Annual World Cyber Games. There I saw familiar faces, like Kuya Kiko, Chester, Marky, Sasa, Ara, Jennessy and his little sister Denise, Kuya Retsu, Jacob, Nadia, Aira, and met new ones like Pendrille, Meca, among others. It was astounding to see Mark, wearing the movie version of Optimus Prime (by the way, the version I wore was the classic cartoon version). And what's more, he won the competition, and the mon-ayyyyyyyyyyy!

Mark, pa-footlong ka naman! FOOTLONG! FOOTLONG! FOOTLONG! FOOTLONG! LOL


That's basically what I meant to imply by hitting two birds with a single stone: I got to attend two events in just a single day, not to mention being able to take photos (despite my cellphone camera's image quality being an epic fail). But the miss I am pertaining to was my failure to uphold my personal oath not to ride a Jayross bus ever again; a boycott, generally. Because it was already around eleven when I went home. Oh well, better safe than sorry.

Man, my shoulders hurt! XD

I posted about this last Monday. The project was a promising one...

But now I feel compelled to apologize...

Due to factors beyond our control, we are forced to cancel tomorrow's photoshoot (including Sunday's schedule). It came too late to our notice that guns, even fake ones, are NOT ALLOWED inside UP premises; our request for a permit to bring those guns was denied.

We, the cosplayers of the characters of Resident Evil (or the attending cosplayers for that matter), can't possibly portray our characters completely without their signature weapons.

And so we've come up with the tough decision to cancel the photoshoot until further notice. We're sorry for the inconvenience it brought to you guys. We'll make it up to you big time. Somehow. XD


But personally, I think this certain course of event has taught a valuable lesson, that is to prioritize more important things first. This event was planned just for the love of cosplaying. Not that it's bad, but there are just some things in life that are far more important than cosplay, like academics, work, family and other stuff...no matter if we don't like them at all...

Heck, what am I preaching about? LOL

I'm really sorry sa mga naabala... T_T

Start:	Jul 5, '08
Location:	Somewhere inside UP Diliman

That's basically it. XD

So far, the models are:

Mel - Rebecca Chambers
Mhakkie - Claire Redfield
Me - Barry Burton
Sheila - Jill Valentine
Nikki - Ada Wong
Fidel - Chris Redfield
Rye - Leon Kennedy
Friend ni Mel - Ada Wong - Possible? Hope so! ^_^
Surprise guest - Ashley Graham
Jem - Hunk
(unconfirmed) - Ashley Graham
Roddz - William Birkin
Pammie - Zombie Lab worker
Gene - Merchant (unconfirmed)
AC - The Dark Knight's Joker (guest character)
Omar - Crimson Head Zombie
RB - Dracten
Guest cosplayers - Random zombie

I'm not sure if Omar and AC have confirmed to go. I sure hope so.

We are also inviting volunteer cosplayers, photographers and fans who would love to join us.
Just inform us if your interested to join on or before July 5, 2008
Contact: Rye - 09228237293 / cairo_ryan@yahoo.com
Alvin - 09064170092 / raijin_akuma@yahoo.com

By the way, who do we need to ask for a photoshoot permit? O_o

Hooray for the uber-long and redundant group name. XD

Prologue encryption and video compliments of TJ Lim.

First of all, let me say that the 7th Toys, Hobbies and Collectibles Convention was, or is, SUGOI!

I went on both days as a cosplayer, not knowing that correspondents from Sugoi Stuff would discover my presence. Tough luck for me, but enough about that; I will use this opportunity to chronicle my exploits and experiences as a cosplayer on those days.

My first main objective was to take a lot of pictures of cosplayers and everything to see inside the venue. I wasn’t really serious about cosplaying, but since all of my companions were registering, I entered as well. I wanted to take as much pictures as I can, but I only managed to take a few thanks to the raucous crowd who instead want to take pictures of us.I went on Day One wearing the costume of the King of Fighters’ Ralf Jones. I was skeptical about wearing Ralf’s costume because his vest was originally colored green, but I just thought to myself that it’s a color swap. I tried my best to portray Ralf correctly, and thanks to my friend Fidel who cosplayed as Resident Evil 4’s Jack Krauser (mutated form), I get to sell my character in front of the audience. Heck, I even saw myself on QTV’s The Beat!

I saw myself! LOL