Born in Cairo and raised all over the world, Ali studied computer engineering at the American University in Cairo before deciding he preferred storyboards to motherboards. He abruptly abandoned programming to study art direction at the Miami Ad School. From his role as Junior Art Director with D’Arcy Bucharest to Art Director with Leagas Delaney, to creative director at JWT, and Leo Burnett to Executive Creative Director at DDB Berlin, Ali has built an impressive international career in advertising. He co-founded Elephant, Cairo with his lifetime creative partner and friend, Maged Nassar. Their humble two-man shop quickly became the region’s most awarded agency, picking up five Dubai Lynx Grand Prix, and a Gold Lion in under two years. A year after its inception, Elephant was named by the Cannes Lions Independent Showcase as one of the three most exciting new agencies in the world.
Ali’s directorial debut, Never Say No To Panda, won him a Cannes Gold Lion, and with over 100 million YouTube views, was named by The Guardian as “one of the most-watched viral campaigns of all time.” He has worked for top brands including Amazon, Google, Coca-Cola, Tesla, and Budweiser in collaboration with the best advertising agencies in the world. Among numerous other awards, he garnered the D&AD Yellow Pencil for Best Direction on Du Telecom, and just recently a Gold Lions at Cannes and The One Show for his Diesel “Be a Follower” spots. Ali has been named by The Gunn Report as one of the Top Ten Most Awarded Film Directors in the World and made Adweek’s Top 10 Most Exciting Directors in the World in 2020. He recently served as Jury President for Direction at the 2021 D&AD Awards.