Jim Demonakos
# Jim Demonakos

Jim Demonakos (born 1977) is an American director, graphic novelist, musician and event organizer noted for his work in comic books, conventions, and documentary films. He is most often noted as the founder of Emerald City Comic Con and co-founder of Lightbox Expo.

## Early life

The child of Greek immigrants, Demonakos was born September 21, 1977 in Seattle, Washington.

He graduated in 1996, and attended The Art Institute of Seattle in Seattle, Wa. Soon after he opened his first comic shop, and has remained in the comic book and pop culture event industry for two decades.

## Career

Jim Demonakos is the founder of Seattle's Emerald City Comic Con which started asa one-day event at the Qwest Field Events Center in 2003 and broke even with an attendance of 3,000 people. He then spent 15 years developing Emerald City Comic Con into what was the largest independent comic convention in the US, with attendance topping 100,000.

After the show was acquired by ReedPOP, Demonakos worked on events around the world including New York Comic Con, Star Wars Celebration, Oz Comic Con and Comic Con Paris before founding LightBox Expo, a convention for animation, illustration and concept art , that debuted in 2019.

He is also the writer of the New York Times Best Selling graphic novel, The Silence of Our Friends, co-written alongside Mark Long and illustrated by National Book Award winner Nate Powell.

Alongside Kyle Stevens, he co-founded and was a songwriter for the pioneering nerd rock band Kirby Krackle.

Most recently, he was one of two directors (alongside Kevin Konrad Hanna) of Mike Mignola: Drawing Monsters, a feature length, award-winning documentary about Mike Mignola and the creation of his comic book universe centered around Hellboy.

## Personal life

Jim Demonakos lives with his wife in Mukilteo, Washington.

## Film credits

* Mike Mignola: Drawing Monsters (2022) – director/producer
