"My name is Jerm and I am South Africa’s 39th best cartoonist."

So claims JERM (JEREMY NELL), one of the most exciting new talents on the South African cartooning scene. In a few short years he has powered his way to the fore with an astute understanding of modern technology and an unrivalled passion for his work.

Born in 1979, JERM says he didn’t do much after that "until late 2005, when I left my boring corporate job to draw cartoons, drink cheap coffee, and listen to the Sex Pistols and Beastie Boys all day long."

Starting out for The Times with his 'Urban Trash' strip, and then replacing it in 2008 with 'The Biggish Five' which is now widely syndicated. Jerm explains: "I struggled to make it financially beneficial. This was largely due to most editors labelling it “too politically incorrect” because of its cultural stereotyping (on which the gags were based). I then launched The Biggish Five (in English and Afrikaans), which features Africa’s Big Five game as anthropomorphic toddlers, and is currently one of the most widely published local comic strips.

In 2007 he became The Times' first editorial cartoonist, drawing the paper's front page 'pocket cartoon' for almost 3 years.

Currently, he draws a daily political cartoon for The New Age, where he has been given the space that his cartoons deserve.

In 2010 he married Mrs Jerm and they live in the northern suburbs of Cape Town, where he works from a home studio, using a Wacom tablet, Linux, and a 27-inch Dell UltraSharp monitor. All of his work is created digitally, using open source software.

JERM's work is featured in the 2009 and 2010 editions of 'The Year in Cartoons'