Meet Tom Roberts | Tom Grimes Cosplay

We had the good fortune of connecting with Tom Roberts and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Tom, how do you define success?
For me success is being satisfied with what you have accomplished or knowing that you’re heading in the right direction to achieve your own goals.

It isn’t necessarily all about likes or followers. We all know algorithms on social media are unpredictable so, basing success on a number of likes is pointless, or comparing yourself to another user who has way more followers than yourself, anyone can get lucky with a reshare which can hugely impact those figures.

Of course, getting a good response in the world of social media can be a huge confidence boost but it can also hurt you unnecessarily when those numbers don’t start adding up.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
My new found love for cosplay has really brought many things into my life. I have screen accurate costumes which match everything we see on screen, even down to the rips on the shirts matching, along with SFX make up I can create many different variations of the character of Rick Grimes.

Embodying a character, whilst trying to be true to what we see on screen, you also have to make it your own….this isn’t something that just happens, it takes time and practice. I still feel like I’m learning now. It has given me confidence to get in there and showcase myself a lot more. So much so that I have got into the world of TV & Film appearing in lots of different things and I have recently landed my first actual acting role for a pilot of a new TV show.

Everything takes effort…nothing lands at your feet. So if you apply yourself to whatever it is you do, then you can accomplish many things, things beyond what you thought were even possible.

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.
Firstly I’d make sure it was a weekend in which Comic-Con was happening. This is always a winner and is bags of fun. The chance to meet celebrities from your favourite Movie or TV show is something else. The opportunity for a picture with them and have something signed, isn’t something to be missed.

Then it would have to be to a music venue and watch some live, local musical talent. DIY bands often put months into writing material, rehearsing and then performing, usually to relatively small crowds, that doesn’t deter them from wanting to perform. Intimate gigs are pretty cool, a nice rawness to the music. As i said earlier, accomplishment and success is creating something your happy with yourself, if only a few people see or hear what you’ve created, then those are the lucky ones.

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?
At the beginning of my journey I was like a rabbit in the headlights. I was so overwhelmed by all the information out there. Cosplaying was a whole new world to me so I just went in trying to create Rick Grimes in my own way. I knew the basics of what I had to do so tried my best to achieve what I had set out to do.

Then during my reshearch i ended up talking to a guy called Steffen Wold Stensløkken. He knew everything there was to know about the Rick Grimes character. This guy knew his stuff. So much so that he even knew the branding of the clothes that Rick wore. This is where all his help came in. Over the years with his help I have managed to aquire many screen accurate costumes, which adds real authenticity to my cosplay. I cant thank him enough!

Website: www.tomgrimescosplay.com

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