AC Hernandez The Badass Filipino Craftsman

AC Hernandez is a popular and familiar name in the Philippines cosplay community. As for how I met him and got to sit down with him for this interview dates back to September 2, 2022. I went to the World Cosplay Summit Saudi Exhibition Event held in Riyadh last year and that’s where I met Amado Carl Hernandez the friendliest and a most easygoing personality one will ever come across. We hit it off from the get-go talking about cosplay, games, and many other things.

Conversations with AC Hernandez made me realize how good of a craftsman he is and how passionate he is about cosplaying though he claims it’s just a hobby.  I got to witness his Jiraiya cosplay n’ performance and believe me it was a sight to behold. It felt like Jiraiya-sensei had come down to reality with how AC was moving about in that picture-perfect costume of his. Apart from Baka Sakura from South Africa I had most interactions with AC.

AC Hernandez is a craftsman by profession and he hails from Imus City, Cavite, Philippines. He started cosplaying way back in 2008 and so 15 years have already passed. AC has come a long way in this one n’ a half decade and he is still going strong. He shuts out all the negatives that can follow a cosplayer like trolling, bullying, and body-shaming and focuses only on his cosplaying which is a source of happiness for him.

Journey Of AC Hernandez

Like many cosplayers from around the world, AC Hernandez was also fascinated by anime in his younger days. And, we all know what might follow if you’re a sucker for anime. Yes, you end up becoming a cosplayer more often than not since you want to portray your favorite characters. It was the same for AC. He fell head over heels for anime like many of us and that led him to become the cosplayer he is today as he explained, “I got into cosplay because of my love for anime. Started making props for friends and from there I never stopped!”

The very first cosplay of AC Hernandez was ‘Jiraiya’ from Naruto. He started with such an iconic character then when I met him years after that he was still Jiraiya but I’m sure the costume had gone through major upgrades over the years as it most definitely is a special cosplay for AC since a cosplayer’s first cosplay is the most memorable one. “What was your first cosplay?”, I enquired. “My first cosplay was Jiraiya from Naruto!”, he replied with a nostalgic expression.

From that point onward AC Hernandez has continued to cosplay and has crafted many noteworthy pieces. From swords to guns, from armor to high-tech crafts he has created a lot. Also, he attended numerous conventions and competitions. Among all the cons he has been to none of them came out on top as his favorite. “So which one is it?!!”, I probed. “Dragoncon! I’ve never been to that convention but I heard a lot of crazy good things about it online and saw a lot of videos. It is one of the events I really want to go to someday.”, he clarified.

Accolades And Achievements

As I have already stressed in the previous section AC Hernandez is a veteran cosplayer and has been to numerous conventions over the years. So naturally, he has competed in many cosplay competitions. He must have won many awards but I did not stress the quantity and focused only on the best ones.

“What are the most noteworthy awards that you have won in your cosplay career?”, I probed. “The first one that comes to mind is that I won in Anime Festival Asia!”, he reminisced, “We went as Team Philippines to Asian Regional Cosplay Championships 2011 and became the Grand Champion!” Now, that is some serious silverware if you ask me.

“Then what about your best achievement as a cosplayer so far?”, I probed further. “That would be representing the Philippines in the World Cosplay Summit 2021 and winning the Brother Award for that year!”, he replied with a pleasant smile. Also, I have to mention that he then represented the Philippines again in the World Cosplay Summit Saudi Exhibition Event in 2022.

Cosplaying Essence Of AC Hernandez

AC Hernandez is very modest when it comes to his crafting and costume-making skills. From what I have seen his costumes and crafts are near-perfect. Well, visually they are to the naked eye at least. If you want to find faults then check with a microscope or something. I have also witnessed his flawless stage performance which had a different aura about it.

“Tell me about your crafting and costume-making skills!”, I probed once more. “This question is pretty broad to keep it short. My costume-making and crafting skills are fine.”, he replied with a smirk. I was not satisfied with the answer so started pestering for more information but to no avail.

Forced to change the topic I asked, “Then tell me about your makeup and wig-styling skills!”. To this, he humbly replied, “My wig-styling and makeup skills are at the beginner level. I started out in this hobby as a craftsman so I wasn’t really into learning makeup and wig-styling back then. I’m slowly learning them just recently.”

“Do you think it’s important to be in character while cosplaying?”, I asked the most critical question. “Well, I think it is for me at least. It shouldn’t be the rule but for me, being in character is my way of having fun in costume. We all have our own way of having fun and I think that’s the most important part of cosplaying!”, AC Hernandez explained.

“What other cosplaying activities do you enjoy? Photoshoots?”, I enquired further. “Yeah, for sure! One of my favorite activities in cosplay is the photoshoots, especially the outdoor / on-location shoots.”, he stated. “Tell me about your next cosplay!”, I ushered the much-awaited probe. “Right now, I’m working on a costume for me from Ghost of Tsushima. It is for an event I was invited to guest and hold a workshop in. I’m so excited about the trip.”, he answered enthusiastically.

Final Few Words

“Would you like to say something about Deshi Geek?”, I hinted at the end of the interview with the question. “Thank you so much for having me here. Please continue on spreading the love for cosplay. More power to you guys!!!”, AC Hernandez replied with some praising and encouraging words.

“What’s your impression of the Bangladeshi Cosplay Scene?”, I asked. “Well from photos and interaction with some of the people from the community. Looks like a fun and growing community. If there’s only one piece of advice I can give that would be, have fun!! I know it sounds really generic but we cosplay mostly because we want to have fun, not to get likes or attention. Cosplay is for you not for other people.”, he remarked.