Marcin Podolec

(b. 1991) – a drawer and comics scriptwriter, a film animator.

He studied animation and graduated in cinematography studies from the Leon Schiller Film School in Łódź, where he presently lectures. Apart from comics, he makes animated films, his own shorts, documentaries and music videos.

Podolec’s comics explore various kinds of unfortunate experiences and circumstances in end times: ‘Wszystko zajęte’ (All Full) covers a wide palette of powerful emotions experienced by two protagonists employed at a funeral home, ‘Morze po kolana’ (Sea Up to the Knees) is a comic-book reportage about the Polish countryside and individuals who are in no way privileged. This is also the route taken by a children’s series, ‘Bajka na końcu świata’ (Fairy Tale for the End of the World), the adventures of a girl searching for her parents and her dog in a post-apocalyptic world. Biographical reportage is a separate stream in the author’s work: ‘Dym’ (Smoke) is a comic-book reworking of an interview with the vocalist and lyricist from Pablopavo (Paweł Sołtys), Fugazi Music Club portrays Warsaw’s cult music club; there have been French (Ossi…) and German (Ein Leben für den Fußball…) editions of the biography of football player Oskar Rohr, illustrated by Podolec.

His debut, ‘Kapitan Sheer’ (Captain Sheer) took second place in the Comic Book of the Year poll 2010, and a year later the Polish Comics Association and International Festival of Comics and Games in Łódź called ‘Czasem’ (Sometimes) the best comic book of the year. Podolec’s anonymous etude ‘Dokument’ (Documentary, 2015) won the School Competition of the O!PLA festival, and was nominated for the Talenty Trójki award of Programme Three of Polish Radio, and the Gold Lajkonik during the Krakow Film Festival 2015. ‘Bajka i jej gang’ (Fairy Tale and Her Gang) was nominated for the City of Warsaw Literary Award in the children’s literature category (2022).

For more on the work of Marcin Podolec, see: here.