Serbian director and theatre manager. Among the first generation of graduates from the Department of Acting at the Theatre Academy in Belgrade, Živomir Joković was an actor at the Comedy Theatre of Kragujevac and the Boško Buha Theatre (Pozorište Boško Buha) in Belgrade. In 1959, he specialized in puppetry at FAMU (Film and TV School of Academy of Performing Arts) of Prague. In 1972, he established the Pinokio Travelling Puppet Theatre, which later became the present-day Pozorište lutaka Pinokio (Pinocchio Puppet Theatre) of Zemun, where he worked as its theatre manager until 1998.

Živomir Joković directed for many “Pinokio” productions as well as for other puppet theatres in Serbia and Bulgaria (Sofia, Varna, Silistra). He became known for his devotion to epic themes, such as Smrt Majke Jugovića (Death of the Mother of the Jugovići, 1989) by Ivo Vojnović, Boj na Kosovu (The Battle of Kosovo, 1996) by Ljubomir Simović; and to classical drama, including Priča o Konju (The Story of a Horse, 1997) by Leo N.Tolstoy; as well as to works of national playwrights, such as Velimir i Bosiljka (Velimir and Bosiljka, 1999) by Stevan Pešić. He has translated and adapted many plays for the puppet theatre.

The recipient of many awards for direction in Zrenjanin, Subotica and Niš, Živomir Joković was also awarded the October Prize of Zemun, the Golden Link (Zlatni Beočug) Award, the Medallion of the City of Belgrade, and the Little Prince Lifetime Achievement award in Subotica (2005).

(See Serbia.)