Hesham Ellabban

It was Hesham Ellabban’s dream ever since he started as a writer at Saatchi & Saatchi in 1998 to put Egypt on the global advertising map — because, as he always says, “Egypt is a country loaded with hidden talent.”

Just one year into his first job, a greeting card he created for Saatchi was selected to be showcased at Cannes Lions, marking Egypt’s first-ever appearance on the international stage. Over the years, Hesham went on to win more than 80 awards with Saatchi, JWT, Leo Burnett and KAIRO for Ideas, including three Dubai Lynx Grand Prix, a CLIO, and Egypt’s first ever two Cannes Lions.

In 2012, Hesham founded KAIRO, a fearless independent creative agency. Since its inception, KAIRO has consistently ranked among the region’s most awarded creative companies — winning Independent Agency of the Year twice and earning recognition at Cannes Lions in the Film category, an honor achieved only a handful of times in Egypt’s history — another one of which Hesham was also behind.

Hesham has also served twice as a jury member at the prestigious CLIO Awards in New York. Today, he continues his journey as a storyteller, creating narratives across advertising and film — currently developing both a feature film and a documentary project.