Creative Director in Abu Dhabi.
Youssef Kamal Akef. Creative Director and Film Director working across Abu Dhabi, Al Ain, and the wider UAE capital. Government ceremonies, private cultural events, and brand direction for the emirate that sets the tone for the country.
Two Guinness World Records directed in Al Ain (2024). UAE Golden Visa, Creative Category. Lecturer at EMDI Institute.
Recent Abu Dhabi work.
ADEK Value Awards 2025. Creative direction for the Abu Dhabi Department of Education and Knowledge Value Awards. A three-phase government ceremony: entrance innovation cues, flexible stage reveal, immersive projection sequences.
Louvre Abu Dhabi private high-net-worth gathering. Creative direction for an exclusive event for Al Dar, via The WAY Studio. Light, projection, and architectural installations composed around Jean Nouvel's dome.
Al Ain Flower Festival 2024. Guinness World Record for the Largest Natural Flower Bouquet (49 metres, 7,000 blooms, 290,000 visitors).
Al Ain Zoo Conservation Festival 2024. Guinness World Record for the Largest Palm Leaf Sentence, using indigenous UAE material at record scale.
Why Abu Dhabi.
Abu Dhabi is where the UAE's creative standard is set. Government ceremonies, cultural institutions like the Louvre and the Guggenheim Abu Dhabi, and a steady drumbeat of world-class events demand a different kind of creative direction than commercial briefs in Dubai.
It means understanding protocol. Working within brand frameworks that matter. Holding an emotional arc across a ceremony that government officials, foreign dignitaries, and a live broadcast audience all experience simultaneously.
I've been directing in Abu Dhabi for over a decade. The projects listed above aren't outliers in my work — they're the core of it.
Work in Abu Dhabi.
For creative direction, event direction, or cultural production briefs in the UAE capital.
youssefkamal@icloud.com