Cosplay That Cares: Project Pixie Dust

In lieu of the recent events in Newton, CT and China within the past week and with Christmas next week, I decided I should talk about kids and also direct people’s attention towards a project that needs your support and could use a boost of holiday magic. The world is not a great place at the moment, and not just in the US and China. The Middle East is not great for children right now either. But there are ways people can help and spread a bit of goodness and warmth where it matters. Those little bits add up. And in this case, you can do it dressed in your favorite costumes and as your favorite characters.
The project in need is called Project Pixie Dust. It’s a cosplay based initiative  meant to help encourage  children and teens , around the world with hydrocephalus, a brain condition, to feel a bit better while living with the currently incurable condition. The project was started after Tina, the founder, who has hydrocephalus, had a touching and sympathetic meeting with Aladdin and Jasmine cast members during a trip at Walt Disney World.

Tina and the Aladdin and Jasmine cast members whose encounter inspired her.

The two, in character, ended up speaking to Tina for over 15 minutes, genuinely interested and engaged after Tina divulged her “Genie wish” to find a cure for her condition. Tina was so touched by the experience, but she realized that many families and thus children with hydropcephalus cannot afford to go to Walt Disney World or Disneyland and experience that same magic of favorite characters speaking directly to them about their condition and giving warm words of encouragement and support. It is also a lot to ask people to record people in the parks. She explains on the project’s official tumblr blog:

What’s stopping me from doing this? Why can’t I take my own videos in the parks? How amazing would it be, if a parent could show their child a video of their favorite character, talking to them? How many kids could say that Peter Pan knows what their brain condition is, even though the kids at school don’t?

She thus has put out a request for cosplayers of Disney characters, Harry Potter, Star Wars, Marvel (X-Men, Avengers, Spider-Man etc) and DC Comics (Superfamily, Batfamily, Wonder Woman, Flash, Green Lantern) and characters from Cartoon Network and Nickelodeon shows or from well known anime  (I’d say like Ash from Pokemon) and Nintendo videogames (Mario, Luigi, Peach, Link, Zelda, etc) to make an inspirational, sweet video message, in character, for these kids. From Tina:

The video’s wouldn’t focus on a cure, mind you — the condition is incurable.  We don’t know if there will ever be a cure, it can be caused by so many things.

We don’t want to give anyone false hope. That isn’t helpful.

Rather, inspiration. Happiness.  Maybe some motivation to get through a tough time. Just a sweet, inspiring message.

Tina has in particular openly requested or put emphasis on the search for well known X-men character cosplayers, who as mutants also have like these children, “incurable” things different about themselves. Tina explains kids can relate to them quite a bit, especially Rogue, who in the movies was bent on finding a cure for her powers. They are also looking for Barbara Gordon as Oracle cosplay as a shining example of someone having a disability and yet not giving up because of it, and flourishing as a person under the Oracle moniker.

I don’t need a cape, thanks.

As of this week, from what I can tell, the project has yet to receive any videos and, for something that would take a few minutes to record , I am surprised. Cosplayers, you love dressing up, you love playing the part. Why not actually be heroes? Do you think you can afford a few minutes of your time and support this project?

I am a firm believer in doing the right thing, and when it comes to kids, I don’t joke around. I myself am not a cosplayer (though I would love to cosplay Balder from Thor one day, he’s the only hero I can find that I look anything like) but I know many people are, and are brilliant at what they do. Please, if that is you, and your characters are appropriate please check out Project Pixie Dust and contribute. I can’t think of a better time than the holidays to do just that.

For more information about this wonderful idea, you can contact Tina here at her tumblr or email her at ProjectPixieDust@gmail.com

Other info for Project Pixie Dust:

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