Francis Porcel

For as long as he can remember, Francis Porcel (born in 1977) has always loved playing games. As he puts it, "For me, each toy was the pretext for an escape into a fantasy world. That plunged me into a considerable number of family and school conflicts. Because adults kept confiscating my toys, I found drawing as a way to continue playing and letting my imagination wander." The drawings quickly became comics. The first attempts took the form of short stories inspired by Bruguera, Mortadelo and Philemon. The young Francis Porcel was also fascinated by the art of Albert Uderzo and another great pro, Gimenez from Spain. It was on discovering the latter's L'Étoile Noire that the decision was made: Francis Porcel would become a cartoonist. At the time he had just turned 16. At 19, he went to the School of Fine Arts in Barcelona, which he attended for three years. He became aware of his own limitations and tried to overcome them. He met young students, such as Sergio Garcia, with whom he became great friends. The pair is now considered to be the future of Iberian comics. At 22, with Magemultimedia (Spain), he published what he considers his first effort of any value, La Cité des Morts. It wasn't long after its release that Francis Porcel was contacted by Dargaud, who introduced him to Jean-David Morvan. This meeting ultimately produced the series Reality Show. "Since then," he admits, "I consider myself the luckiest guy on the planet!" One thing's for sure — he's certainly one of the most talented.