Native New Yorker, Martial Artist, Actor and Writer Afrim Gjonbalaj will pen the upcoming comic book, The Legend of the Night Owl for Legacy Comix, becoming the first signed writer of the company besides its founders.
Working with Condrey artist Kieran Quinn, the series promises to be a gritty, Martial Arts noir tale that fans of Quinn’s previous work will eat up. Born and raised in Brooklyn. Afrim knows exactly what his potential readers want.
“Without giving too much away I can guarantee you that a story like this has never been done before” Gjonbalaj said. “It ties in everything I grew up on- from beat ’em up side scroller arcade games, to martial arts films and the complicated nature of family, cultural identity and religion.”
As a kid, Afrim grew up reading comics, dreaming of time travel, science fiction while watching every Martial Arts, Horror and Anime film he could find on bootleg VHS tapes at corner stores and bodegas.
As an Actor, Afrim received his B.A. in Theater with a concentration in Acting from Buffalo State College in 2006 as a member of the Educational Opportunity Program (EOP). As a member of SAG-AFTRA/AEA, Afrim has been seen on Ramy (Hulu), Daredevil (Netflix), The Blacklist: Redemption (NBC) and on stage as Amir Kapoor in Disgraced by Ayad Akhtar at Road Less Traveled Productions in Buffalo, NY.
As a Martial Artist, Afrim is currently a 2nd degree black belt in Shotokan Karate and a purple belt in Brazilian Jiu-jitsu under Shihan Gene Dunn.
“What a trip. I used to window shop as a kid because I couldn’t afford comics and now I’m making one.” Gjonbalaj said. “It’s literally a dream come true thanks to Legacy Comix.”
For more information on Afrim, head to AfrimGjonbalaj.com
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