The Defender

Laurent Galandon, born in France in 1970, has built himself a reputation as a writer of the oppressed. Over the span of just a few years, the author has produced numerous comics of which the common point seems to be a desire to open the public's eyes to the fate of certain populations or individuals. From the deported children featured in "L'Envolée sauvage" (awarded several prizes, including at Angoulême in 2008), to the gypsies of "Quand souffle le vent," to the children of agricultural prison colonies in "Innocents coupables," or the Jewish who fought in the French resistance during WWII in "Vivre à en Mourir" ("The Red Poster," Europe Comics), Galandon likes telling the stories of the damned. This is rather a risky task which he always seems to handle with the utmost sensitivity in his multiple collaborations. His minimalist dialogues and the space left for silence and emotion have truly won over his readers. His most recent work includes the drama "L'Avocat" ("The Defender," Europe Comics) for publisher Le Lombard, alongside Frank Giroud and Frédéric Volante.

Frank Giroud, born in Toulouse, France, in 1956, managed three career paths over the course of his life: that of a history student and teacher, first at a French high school in Milan, and then back in France in Grenoble; that of a tour guide, enabling him to visit countries ranging from Israel to India, and Tunisia to Thailand; and finally that of comic book scriptwriter, the job that he always wanted. The early success of his series "Louis la Guigne," created with Jean-Paul Dethorey, soon put him in a position to drop everything else, but he never saw any contradiction between his various activities. The historian in him gathered information for the scriptwriter, and the traveler discovered stories around the world for the author to tell. From the very beginning, he juggled eras and boundaries, ranging from the 17th century of "Missouri" (Dupuis) and "Pieter Hoorn" (Glénat), to the 18th century of "Patriotes" (Glénat), and the 20th century with three dramas illustrated by Lax, all for the Dupuis Aire Libre collection: the Indo-China of the "Oubliés d'Annam," the Romania of "La Fille aux ibis," and the Algeria of "Azrayen." History played a leading role in all of his stories, demonstrating the philosophical vision of this committed man who tried to reconstruct the real past of people around the world, beyond the myths and propaganda. He joined the Europe Comics catalog in 2019 with "L'Avocat" ("The Defender"), teaming with Laurent Galandon and Frédéric Volante to tell the story of a Paris lawyer who travels to war-torn Iraq to prove the innocence of his client.