Taiyo Matsumoto was born in Tokyo, Japan, in 1967. He made his manga debut in the magazine Comic Afternoon with the short story Straight. At the tender age of 22, he traveled throughout France for artistic research. Heavily influenced by the French comics he studied there, Matsumoto's art style subsequently changed dramatically to the unique, alternative look in TEKKONKINKREET: Black & White.He has also created the series Zero, Hanao, Blue Spring, Ping Pong and No. 5. Blue Spring and Ping Pong were turned into live-action films. In 1993, Matsumoto began TEKKONKINKREET: Black & White. In 2006, it was turned into an animated feature film.