Happy Tuesday, True Believers!

I’m back with an overdue cosplay profile! With SDCC, Dragon*Con, NYCC and Costoberfest, my interview with Chris & Miracole got swept up in the insanity. But no worries, as the next few months will be packed with ever more great Cosplay & Costuming posts.

I met Chris & Miracole Burns earlier this year at SDCC, but we’ve been talking via Twitter for a while before. Plus we both have friends in the same circles but never had the opportunity to meet. I’m, as always, overwhelmed by the amazing craftsmanship and skill they put into their costumes. Read on to learn much more about the wonderful Chris & Miracole!

Me: Introduce Yourselves!

Miracole: Hi, my name is Miracole Burns. I am a professional Costumer in the Film and Television Industry. I am also a Cosplayer, a Comic reference model, and consider myself quite a geek. I love super heroes, comics and cosplay! Actually, our art and statue collection have kind of taken over the house.

Chris: And my name is Chris Burns. I'm an Actor, Director, Producer, as well as being a Costumer like Miracole. I do just about everything in the Film biz. Oh, did we mention that we're married? Some people have actually asked us if we're siblings, oddly enough.

Me: How long have the two of you been cosplaying? And how did you get fall into it?

Miracole: Super heroes are larger than life; they always defend what's right and look out for those who can't protect themselves. In 2004, my love of super heroes led me to become one of the founders of the Heroes Alliance, a super hero themed children's charity. Over the years, our costumed group has raised thousands of dollars for numerous children's charities. Our little group has grown and now has branches that span across the U.S. and the U.K. Working with the H.A. led me to eventually attend my first convention in costume.

Chris: My answer isn't nearly as elegant...Miracole made me do it! Actually, after we had been dating for a few months in early 2007, she was doing a photo shoot as Harley and asked me to join her as Joker. When she asked me to do this, I thought she was nuts. I completely supported her cosplaying; but being a person who doesn't like strangers in their personal space, the thought of doing this in a room with thousands of people with no respect for boundaries, I wasn't going for it. That is until the photo shoot. I figured, what the hell, let's give it a try. And I loved it! We've been doing it together ever since.

Me: What were your first costumes?

Miracole: I didn't have a 'first' Marvel costume, I had three! For my very first Dragon*Con (A huge comic, sci-fi convention that takes place in Atlanta every Labor Day weekend.) I brought EXTREME X-MEN Rogue, Black and White Spider-Woman, and Ultimate Rogue. I ran around as a Marvel heroine all weekend and had the time of my life!

Chris: Believe it or not, Miracole bought me a symbiote Spider-Man zentai suit as a tester just to see if I'd wear it. When she gave it to me, she had just arrived to Atlanta from Florida. I was so excited that I put it on right away. I guess I have to mention that I happened to be working at the time. I was the Technical Director at a Theatrical Playhouse, so while people were in the theatre watching a play, I was running around the lobby in a Spider-Man suit. My first real costume, though, was my Red Skull.

Me: You two make most of your costumes, right? How and where did you learn how to sew & craft?

Miracole: We design all of our costumes and make many of the elements to them; however, we don't sew most of the fabric portions. Being in the industry, we are blessed to have access to many different amazing vendors that we have a long-standing personal relationship with. Using our different vendors, we blend both our and their costume elements together to produce a one-of-a-kind costume. Although we meticulously labor over every aspect of the creation of every costume, I tend to take most pride in my custom leather and prop work.

Me: How did the Marvel universe suck you in? Who are your favorite Marvel characters?

Chris: Well I started reading comics as a kid, maybe around the age of 10.
I grew up in a really rough city and comics at the time were a great escape and source of an excellent moral compass for a kid to learn about right and wrong, self-sacrifice, and doing the right thing.

Miracole: I've always been a fan of strong independent women and I am a huge X-Men fan. If it's X-Men, I'm there. Two of my favorite characters without a doubt are Rogue and Dark Phoenix; both incredibly strong women with terrible conflicts or powers keeping them from finding true love or happiness. There is such beautiful conflict in their stories and personalities how can you not fall in love with these women?

Chris: I forgot to mention my favorite characters, didn't I?

Miracole: Yes you did, love.

Chris: I seem to gravitate toward villains for some reason. They are a lot more fun to play; The Red Skull, Bullseye and my all-time favorite, Loki.

Me: What would be your dream Marvel costumes?

Chris: Easy answer. Loki designed by Esad Ribic from the LOKI limited series.

Miracole: Since I am partial to Ms. Marvel, I would LOVE to do a Binary (Ms. Marvel genetically manipulated by the Brood). But I have yet to find a way to sculpt hair (and hand) flames that look realistic, that are not too heavy, AND that I can light up. It's my dream I tell ya, DREAM!

Me: When you go to choose a new costume, do you aim for matching ones, or just choose a character that suits you best?

Miracole: Well, we really like doing couples characters, or costumes that complement one another, but it doesn't always work. There really isn't a good female counterpart to the Red Skull, so when Chris wears that, I usually act as his handler.

Chris: We also costume to our body types. I mean I can't do the Juggernaut, I mean I'm 5'11" and 170lbs. It's just going to look ridiculous if I try it. Likewise, Miracole would not make a good Kitty Pryde or Pixie because they are both around 4'9"-5'. Miracole is almost 6' tall and is built like a woman, not a girl. Physically, it just doesn't work.

Me: Cosplay actually helped you get jobs in the movie & film industry. How did that happen?

Chris: I had actually been working in the industry for eight years when I met Miracole. I was working on a TV show in 2008 when the AJC (The big newspaper in Atlanta.) did an article for Dragon*Con, about us being a cosplaying couple. Someone brought that article to set the next day and was showing it around. Agata Maszkiewicz, Wardrobe Designer for the show saw the article and asked for Miracole's number.

Miracole: I received a call from Agata, and I came in for an interview. She hired me that day and I have been working in wardrobe for Film & TV ever since. I've been fortunate to work on some really great shows. Funny enough, I just finished working on a set with Agata. I owe that wonderful woman SO much!

Me: What would you say is your favorite part about cosplaying?

Miracole: I really enjoy sharing my passion for comics, costuming and art with someone I love. It really makes a huge difference in my life to have someone who truly gets, understands and loves everything that makes me, me. It truly makes the life of insanity I live fun and worth living.

Chris: Aww.

Miracole: Stop it, you. It's also very fulfilling when fans notice and appreciate all the attention to detail that go into each and every costume. It's an immense compliment when people who know and have loved these characters all their lives, geek out over your interpretation. I will always do it for me, but it is always nice to have your work appreciated.

Chris: My favorite part is interacting with fans. I love to interact with them as their favorite character and give them a little slice of what that person might be like in real life. Again, this is why villains are more fun, you get to be bad and can really give people interactions they won't soon forget.

Me: Let's say someone wants to jump into Cosplay, what would be some key basics for them to start with?

Miracole: Don't be afraid to ask for help from the more experienced people in the cosplay community. They are at their core, fans too. Most have been around for a while and have probably encountered and overcome the same problems you might be dealing with for a costume build. Never be afraid to reach out and ask. Also, Cosplay because you love it; [whether] you love the character, the art, the challenge of bringing 2D designs into reality, sharing your hobby with friends [and/or] you love creating. If you do it for those reasons, you will always be happy and fulfilled in all that you do.

Chris: I would just go back to what I said before about cosplay to your body type. I'll never be able to cosplay the Hulk or the Thing. I'm just too skinny. Know your body, and use it to your advantage to do the best costumes you can.

Thanks again, Chris & Miracole! I can’t wait to see what costumes these two create next. For even more, swing over to Chris’s site, burnsactor.com, and Miracole’s, miracole.com. Plus follow both on twitter @actorchrisburns and @miracoleburns.

Photography by Judith Stephens, Anna Fisher & Ljinto

~Judy

[Edited By Moderator]