Steve & Rico
Rico Schacherl & Stephen Francis, the two creators of the popular cartoon, Madam and Eve, will talk on how they worktogether doing sketches and text. There will be an illustrated lecture with an exhibition of the original artwork.
About Steve & Rico
Stephen Francis
A multi-award winning writer, radio and TV personality, Stephen Francis is best-known ---together with artist Rico Schacherl --as the creator of South Africa's most popular cartoon strip, Madam & Eve.
A true South African phenomenon, Madam & Eve have become icons in the new South Africa, and is now sold around in the world and translated into different languages, including French, Danish and Norwegian.
Stephen has also written over 28 episodes for the Madam & Eve television series, and one episode he penned -- won second place at the recent Rose d'Or Festival in Switzerland, scoring a coveted bronze award for best international situation comedy.
Besides running his successful creative agency with his partner Rico -- Rapid Phase Entertainment-- Stephen also writes feature films, with writing partner Gus Silber.
Some of their movies produced in South Africa for the international market include "Pets", starring George Hamilton, "Dazzle", starring Jeff Fahey and distributed by Disney, the horror-thriller "Slash", starring Steve Railsback and released internationally by Universal Pictures, and scripting work on two Leon Schuster comedies, There’s a Zulu On My Stoep and Mama Jack.
In addition to Madam & Eve, his many television credits include writing the first four seasons of the groundbreaking drama Soul City, the police thriller Zero Tolerance, and most recently, The South African Music Awards and Khomanani Day, two special television events broadcast live on SABC.
For the last two years, Stephen has also written the script for the CIAK International Youth Film Festival, held in Italy and Thailand – each time, winning for South Africa the grand prix of the festival – “Best Film” -- with over 28 countries competing.
Stephen has also written many corporate shows and videos, winning the highest accolade in South African advertising -- The Lourie Grand Prix.
In addition, Stephen also created the popular "Hollywood Hotline" radio show on Radio 702 – and frequently gives seminars on creativity and comedy.
A transplanted American, Stephen was originally born in New York City, and before settling in South Africa 18 years ago, worked for Columbia Pictures, United Artists, and for Paramount Pictures' television division, which produced, among other shows, "The Miss Universe Pageant" seen live by 600 million people around the world.
Rico Schacherl
Born in Austria in 1966, I couldn't stand the weather so decided to emigrate to South Africa in 1968 bringing my parents along with me.
After less than successful stints at studying architecture and graphic design at WITS Technicon and Univertsity, I decided to do this cartoonist thing and got hired to work for Laughing Stock magazine in 1989, where I met Stephen Francis with whom I later co-created the Madam & Eve cartoon strip in 1992, which was eventually syndicated all over South Africa and also re-published in France, Denmark, Finland and Sweden -- while also working as editorial illustrator for the Weekly Mail until 1994.
While keeping a regular supply of daily cartoons going, I also work on a wide variety of illustration and cartoon projects with clients ranging from corporate communication, editorial, education, magazines, publishing, television, comics and advertising. Further projects include animation concept and character creation and art direction for SABC 2’s education programmes School TV, X-Marks the Spot and Just Chill; and e-TV’s popular animated show Jozi Zoo.
Recent very happy clients include First National Bank, GQ South Africa,The South African Grantmakers Association, First Rand Banking Group, Pick 'n Pay, Department of Science and Technology, Ogilvy PR, SABC 2, Cell C, Telkom and Old Mutual.
I have also had several stories published in local publication such as Bitterkomix, Mamba Comix and US comics anthology Graphic Classics and taken part and exhibited at the Angouleme Festival and the Recontre Internationale Du Dessin De Presse, both in France, and have taken part in many local cartoon and comics exhibitions, most recently the popular Off The Wall I & II multi-media exhibitons at Artspace Durban.
Madam and Eve: Madams of the Caribbean
Hoist the iron! Lower the Vacuum! Raise the wages! It's the dreaded Madams of the Caribbean - the 14th and possibly funniest--- Madam & Eve book ever to set sail for a shopping mall. Having absolutely nothing at all to do with Disney's hugely successful international movie trilogy, Madams of the Carribean features all your favourite Madam & Eve characters...as they set sail and take the mickey out of everyone and everything ----from Jacob Zuma, crime, BEE, Eskom, Brokeback Madam, George W. Bush, Home Affairs....and new reality TV shows such as "Domestic Survivor" and "The Amazing Race Card!" Madams of the Carribean -- Yo ho ho and a bottle of gin and tonic!
