From Cairo to California: Meet the Arab world’s super-agent
By establishing talent agency CAT, Egyptian producer and film director Amr Koura hopes to bridge the cultural gap between the Arab world and the West.
Egyptian producer and director Amr Koura is a social entrepreneur in every sense of the word. Seizing opportunities missed by others, he has used media to deliver inspiring, educational content that promotes positive social change.
Success seems to come naturally for Koura, who in the summer of 2000 made "Sesame Street" accessible to millions of Arabic-speaking preschoolers in Egypt and Lebanon through an Arabic-language adaptation of the popular US children’s educational TV series. Just months after it premiered in Egypt, the local "Sesame Street" co-production named "Alam Simsim," which literally translates into "Simsim’s World," was already among the top five most-watched children’s TV shows in the country, reaching some 12 million children. The Egyptian cast of "Alam Simsim" muppets provides much-needed role models for the young children, encouraging them to take pride in their culture while inspiring them to pursue their academic interests and fulfill their aspirations.
