We had the good fortune of connecting with Michael Alvear-Pozo and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Michael, what’s something about your industry that outsiders are probably unaware of?
Cosplaying even though it looks to be dressing up like it’s Halloween every month takes a lot of time and effort to do. Darth maul from Star Wars is one of my popular cosplays but takes me up to 5 hours to get into as it is a lot of body paint and prepping. A lot of cosplayers also do this as their main job, they partner up with major industries such as Hot Topic, Boxlunch, etc and make content alongside their cosplays to provide entertainment to others.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
I started out with just doing Spider-man suits. I started to take it more seriously when I did Darth Maul when the final season of clone wars was announced and that’s when I started to branch out to more cosplays. It wasn’t easy as Darth Maul still takes me 3-5 hours to get into with bald cap, makeup, etc. During the pandemic tiktok started to become popular and when I debuted darth maul on there that’s when I started to gain more of a following and fanbase. Along the way I’ve learned that there are always gonna be cosplays which will require more time and effort to do but that’s also what makes it worth it and fun. I want the world to know that I’ll be doing cosplay for a long time and that I’m not just a spider-man cosplayer but a variety cosplayer, and that I’ll be doing different cosplays that’ll continue to improve as time goes on.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
Dragoncon in Atlanta, Georgia. The community and convention is so much fun. There’s tons of activities to do such as panels, meetups, as well as rave/parties to go to and plenty of drinks and food throughout all 3 hotel venues. Outside of the hotel venue there are plenty of arcade and popup bars to go to as well. Cosplayers also know how to have fun so if you’re going alone there’s plenty of friendly people to meet and hangout with.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
My long time mentor and friend, Thatshadyhaze. She is the one who started me on this journey I’ve been on for 5 years and has helped me improve my craft over the years. Without her I would not be where I am today.

Website: https://linktr.ee/ultimatemcuspidey?fbclid=PAAaaMDxP1CPkoiIbxjbXZJgm3-c7sQaqDQsY-K63RBSLdT-E7FpcVlaxaSpM

Instagram: instagram.com/ultimatemcuspidey/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/ultimatemcuspid?s=21&t=Am25alBYaQIXg0nSQwHAJA

Facebook: https://m.facebook.com/ultimatemcuspidey/

Other: TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@ultimatemcuspidey?_t=8XnSN21ltHS&_r=1 Twitch: twitch.tv/ultimatemcuspidey/

Image Credits
@callmechuy @ovs_cosplay @comicbookbuddy

Nominate Someone: ShoutoutAtlanta is built on recommendations and shoutouts from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you or someone you know deserves recognition please let us know here.