We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Brian Jones. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Brian below.

Brian, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Can you talk to us about a project that’s meant a lot to you?

The most meaningful project that I have worked on is definitely my charity event called “Funds For Small Heroes”. It started out as a quick project for my college honor society the National Honor Society of Leadership and Success (NSLS). I was doing everything I could to obtain all of the certifications and awards that the NSLS offered and to obtain the final certification, I needed to organize an event that somehow benefited the community. I had thought about doing basic fundraisers, but I did not want it to be something that would not be memorable. I had to think about doing something that would be impactful and would shape not only those who take part in the event, but would also shape me as a person. After a lot of consideration, I decided to incorporate cosplay into the project. I always see these amazing groups of people like the Real Okie Superheroes, who take the time to visit so many people in super hero cosplays to help put a smile on their faces and to give them a sense of comfort and happiness. So I too wanted to be able to involve cosplay into the project since I am a cosplayer myself. So now I decided sort of what I wanted to do, I needed to figure out who it would impact. This was actually a really easy decision for me. I decided that I wanted to help kids in need. By this I mean kids with special needs or kids in local children’s hospitals who need help raising funds for medical procedures, medical equipment or just need funds to help pay for medical bills. The reasoning behind this is because I have a few people in my life who fall under these categories themselves. One of my brothers being on the spectrum, another family member with Trisomy 21 (Downs Syndrome), and my cousin who is also very high on the spectrum who literally has to have 24/7. And though not a single one of them lets their conditions define them, I still wanted to do something that would inspire them by helping others who may have the same conditions. After I decided this I just needed a location and some help to put it together. The first two years I was very fortunate to be able to host the event at Wolfe Pack Taekwondo in Tulsa where I practice Taekwondo. I am very grateful that they opened their space to the general public and allowed us to host such an amazing event for the kiddos. I was also very fortunate to be able to partner with the Tulsa chapter of the charity Extra Life for the first two years as well as the Oklahoma City Ghost Busters, they were a tremendous help with teaching me about charity events as a whole and also a huge help in setting up some really fun attractions at the event as well as being a liaison between me and the local children’s hospital. And I was even more fortunate to have the support of so many friends and family. The Oklahoma Cosplay community is full of so many wonderful people that I had so many of them come out from all over the state without a second thought. They dressed up as Heroes, Villains, Princesses and other cool characters that kids would recognize and want to engage with. They truly helped make the event a big success the past few years. The event itself invites people from all over to come out and support kids in need by taking part in the raffle where you can win various cool and exciting prizes from game stations, replica props and so on. You can also take part in hanging out with the cosplayers who come in character to interact with the kids. The event also has food, drinks and other activities to engage in to keep all family members entertained for the entire duration of the event, even some awesome Taekwondo demonstrations from the Wolfe Pack demo team. All money raised at these events are donated to the Local Children’s hospital. This project, which turned into something bigger than myself, has been the most meaningful project I have ever worked on and I am very grateful that I still have the opportunities to do it in the future.

Brian, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

I am currently a General Manager for a sports retail store that has locations all across the United States. I am also a full-time college student working towards my MBA so that I can achieve some other goals that I have for my life. On the side I do practice Taekwondo and currently working towards my black belt as I sort of decided to join the sport when I was in my late twenties, which goes to show you are never too old to do things in life. I am also a cosplayer. Cosplay is more than just a hobby for me, though it is not quite a career for me either. In my relatively short time of being a cosplayer, I have placed in several competitions and have won numerous awards. I have also been given many opportunities to be a guest at some pretty amazing conventions where I get to be a part of panels where I get to talk in front of big crowds of people, I also get the opportunity to be a guest judge for cosplay competitions and sometimes I even get the awesome opportunities to be an Emcee for some of the conventions where I get to be on stage in front of hundreds of people and just be my goofy self to entertain everyone. I honestly got into cosplay on a whim. I had a free weekend and decided to attend a local convention. It was there I fell in love with the craft and decided I wanted to give it a shot. I was very fortunate to have found myself a group of people that I could call my friends who are now basically extended family and it is thanks to their advise and help through the years that I managed to get to where I am today. Like some cosplayers, I do offer commission work. However my sort of expertise is more aligned with prop making whereas others may be great at wig styling, sewing or some other really awesome craft that goes into cosplaying. The thing I am most proud of aside from my charity event is honestly just the friends I have made along the way. Without their support and love, I don’t know if I would have continued down this path.

Is there mission driving your creative journey?

Honestly I do have a few goals in mind as a cosplayer. The biggest goal I have is to master my craft and one day be recognized on a national level where I am hopefully invited to guest at some of the biggest conventions in the United States. Once I have reached that level, I will know that I myself, have truly made it as a cosplayer. Another goal of mine is to get into voice acting. I have always had a passion for using my voice to bring characters to life in skits, DnD or other outlets, but I really want to get into voice acting and show my skills to a much broader audience, that and I really want to be in some sort of anime because that to me is just another dream I would get to make a reality.

What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?

For me, the most rewarding part of being a cosplayer you would think would be the recognition that I get from my cosplays and winning awards, however it is something more amazing than even that. It is when I get recognized by a kid and they have that look in their eye of pure amazement. When they approach me and ask to take a picture with me and then proceed to tell me how I (the character I am cosplaying) have been an impactful part in their life. Whether I am the Green Arrow and the kid see’s me as this awesome super hero they play as on the Injustice game (Even though I apparently lose a lot in that game), or whether I am a Sith marching alongside Darth Vader and the audience is making way for us to pass by and as they do, you see the faces of kids who are just awestruck by all the cool things they are getting to witness at that point in their lives. Being able to bring joy and happiness to others, especially the next generation, is something I find to be the most rewarding aspect of what I do as a cosplayer.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://linktr.ee/tattedsith
• Instagram: TattedSithCosplay
• Facebook: TattedSithCosplay
• Youtube: TattedSith Gaming
• Other: TikTok: TattedSith Cosplay

Image Credits

BaneGrimmPhoto

R Karch Photography

Kiingwolfx

Sad Eye’s Photos

hing.photography