Darko Perović (1965, Aranđelovac) is Serbian comic book author, animator and illustrator. He collaborates with European publishers, he is most known for his work on the “Magic Wind” series, written by the famous Gianfranco Manfredi for Sergio Bonelli Editore from Milan.
Yugoslavian era: “Brek” and other author comics (1980s)
He started working on comics in 1983, when he finished his education at the Graphic School in New Belgrade. He published in numerous comic magazines in former Yugoslavia (YU strip magazin, Patak, Oscar...).
His first long story “Brek” (44 pages) won the “Polet” award for the best Yugoslavian comic in 1987 and was later published in the form of an album.
At Comic Salon in Vinkovci in 1988, he won the screenplay award for his six-page short story "Azra, Alaraph...".
Besides comics, he also worked on storyboards, animated commercials and short films in Belgrade and Zagreb.
Spanish era: Collaboration with Abuli (1990s)
When the civil war broke out in Yugoslavia in 1991, Perović moved to Barcelona, Spain, where he worked on the “Tremedous Stories” („Historias Tremendas“) with Enrique Abuli, writer of the „Torpedo“ comic series. He also worked on his own comic book series “Deep and Cold” ("Abajo en el frio"), as well as storyboards and animated commercials.
In Spain, his comics were published by magazines Cimoc, Creepy, Makoki, El Vibora; in Italy by Terrific, Lancio Story and Scorpio, and in France by BoDoi. Same stories were reprinted in Serbia, Brazil, Colombia, Germany, UK and Slovenia.
It’s an interesting fact that Abuli and Perović’s story entitled „The Pursuit of a Loose Cunt” („En pos del coño desbocado“) was used as a short film script by two different directors: Boris Petković (alias „Jean-Jacques Beauregard“) from Slovenia (film „Strait ahead“, 1998), and another one from Serbia, while both being unaware of each other’s film.
From 1994 to 2000, Perović also worked on short films for an Amsterdam advertising agency.
Italian era: „Magic Wind“ and Sergio Boneli Editore (2000s)
At the end of 1997, Perović received an offer from the Italian publisher „Sergio Bonelli Editore“ to work on the „Magic Wind“ series, written by Gianfranco Manfredi. The collaboration was shortly interrupted due to NATO’s attack on SR Yugoslavia, but it went on in January 2000 with the „I lupi blu“ episode.
He signed ten episodes of “Magic Wind” and then went to work on mini-series „Shanghai Devil“ and "Adam Wild", both written by Manfredi and published by Bonelli.
He is currently working on special editions of “Magic Wind”. Since 2010, he also collaborates with French publishers „Soleil“ and "Delcourt", drawing for writers such as Novy, Dobbs, Betbeder and Pecau.
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Danilo Milošev – Wostok was born on September 12th in Vršac, Serbia. For more than three decades, he's been writing scripts and drawing comics which were published in numerous publications at home (Danas, Vreme, Politika, Književna reč) and abroad – comic series “Robusto!!!” was published in the USA, comic book “Daddy Where Are You?” in the UK, comic book albums “Corkscrew Against Dope” and “Innocent Man” in Slovenia, he published more than 400 panels of comics in Croatian magazine “Komikaze”, while his comics were also published in Zone 5300, Vera Krant (Netherlands), Inguine (Italy), Pop Wasteland (USA), Gestroco (France), Superstate Funnies (UK), Formaline (Belgium), ComixConnection (Germany), Stripburger, Delo, Apokalipsa (Slovenia), Vizija (Macedonia) etc.
Besides comics, he is also involved with making music with his family parody project “Tehno Muda”, painting (until now he had five solo exhibitions), film (since 1997, he made more than fifty lo-fi films and videos), and also with writing for his blog and publishing his fanzine “Krpelj”. Together with Zlata Vojnić Kortmiš, he launched the independent video production “TV Krpelj” in Spring of 2015. It deals with Serbian and international alternative culture scene.
In January 2022, they founded an association for promotion of alternative culture Drvarska 12. After founding the association, they organized a traveling exhibition of photographs by Vojkan Milošev, which was hosted in Vršac, Subotica, Belgrade and Koper, they published a comic book based on the poetry of Vasko Popa and the “Vučja zemlja” exhibition, four comic books based on prose by Nabor Devolac, comic book anthology “Bizarre Lives”, as well as the joint comic book album by Wostok and Zlata VK “Jesus Loves The Stooges”.
He received the “Oslobođenje grada Vršca” award in 1996, and the “Zlatni Kraguj” award for innovative contribution to comics, as well as other awards and accolades for his work.
The first episode of the “Nevidljivi strip” series by Ivan Mandić was in entirety dedicated to his work and was aired on channel 2 of RTS on October 6th 2022.
Zlata Vojnić Kortmiš (Zlata VK, born September 3rd 1984.) is film and comic author who in collaboration with underground comic (and not only comic) author Wostok creates documentary video films and comics. In 2015, they founded “TV Krpelj” which concentrates on the subcultural and alternative scene and events. Wostok is mostly in the role of producer and writer, while Zlata shoots, edits and directs, as well as animates and collages video with other media, thus creating totally independent, “do-it-yourself” films and videos. Besides video production and comics, she also creates as a designer and photographer.
Her first solo exhibition of comics, photos and video was in Koper, Slovenia. It took place from August 16th to September 25th 2023.
In January 2022, together with Wostok she founded an association for promotion of alternative culture Drvarska 12. After founding the association, they organized a traveling exhibition of photographs by Vojkan Milošev, which was hosted in Vršac, Subotica, Belgrade and Koper, they published a comic book based on the poetry of Vasko Popa and the “Vučja zemlja” exhibition, four comic books based on prose by Nabor Devolac, comic book anthology “Bizarre Lives”, as well as the joint comic book album by Wostok and Zlata VK “Jesus Loves The Stooges”.
In 2023, they made two projects, supported by the municipality of Vršac: celebration of 30 years since the first issue of “Patagonija”, the first alternative comics magazine in Serbia which was published from 1993 until 1999 in Vršac. This project was also the subject of a documentary film, produced by Drvarska 12 and TV Krpelj. The other project was the 8th Vršac Comics Meeting, renewed after a 20-year-long pause. The meeting was the first alternative comics festival in Serbia.
Her work was presented in the documentary series “Nevidljivi strip” by Ivan Mandić, first aired on RTS in October 2022.
