Picopico’s monster suits

From Japan, here're coming the kigurumi. Kigurumi is the Japanese name for costumed animal characters. The name comes from the Japanese term (kiru: to wear) and (kurumu: to be wrapped in ~). These suited performers are sometimes found at shopping malls, theme parks, and booths at animé conventions. For example, Disneyland costumed characters such as Mickey Mouse and costumed "mascot" characters at sports events would be referred to as kigurumi by the Japanese. Sometimes these characters are to entertain children, sometimes as promotional tactics to grab attention on busy city streets. If you ever wanted to find out where these creatures come from, see kigurumi maker Atsushi Tomura of Picopico.