Alaa Karkouti

Alaa is a renowned Film Analyst and an influential professional within the cinema and entertainment industry in the Arab world, known for his efforts in assembling complete statistical and analytical archives on the economics of filmmaking.

This expertise has provided him with numerous opportunities to participate in various panels and juries in film festivals worldwide. He established three cinema magazines during the first ten years of the Millennium. Alaa has also worked in film distribution, film production and theater management. He was involved as a publisher for many prominent publications worldwide.

In his 15 years as a prominent journalist, Alaa had the opportunity to profile and interview numerous movie stars. His annual ranking of the 50 most powerful people working in the film business across the Arab world was the first list of its kind in the Arab world.

As a film analyst, Alaa regularly provides quotes, analysis and editorial comment on the film business in the Arab World in several internationally respected film and business publication outlets including Forbes Middle East, Variety and Screen International.

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Alaa Karkouti is a leading authority on cinema industry in the Arab world, focusing specifically on financial and statistic analysis. He started covering this topic for various publications both in the Arab world and internationally in 1998 and has created a unique database on the last two decades of cinema in the Arab world.

Karkouti is the editor-in-chief of Good News Cinema Magazine, which launched in September 2004. Karkouti was named to edit the new magazine by Good News Group. Good News Cinema Magazine is the biggest and most influential cinema magazine in the Arab world. In April 2008 this expanded to include Good News TV Magazine.

Karkouti worked as a correspondent for the Arabic Forbes Magazine from 2005 until 2008. He was the first to release daily live entertainment news on air on the Egyptian TV channel Dream TV in 2002 for which he was the editor-in-chief.

Previously to founding Good News Cinema Magazine, Karkouti established also in Egypt, Cinema Online Magazine in 2002 followed by Studio Magazine in 2003.

Vodafone Egypt, in 2008, selected Karkouti to be the publisher and editor for two publications: Lahza newspaper and 10 Magazine.

His expertise in cinema analysis has provided him with many opportunities to chair and participate in various panels and jury's in film festivals worldwide. He has covered dozens of film festivals including: Berlin, Venice, Locarno, Clermont-Ferrand, London, Edinburgh, Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Beirut and Cairo film festival. Here he has had the opportunity to interview numerous movie stars and directors. In 2008, Karkouti was the editor-in-chief for the daily Arabic journal of Dubai International Film Festival

Karkouti annually publishes a list of the 50 most powerful people working in film business around the Arab world. The list is an excellent reference to the most important characters that work in Arab Cinema Production. He has also set up strategic marketing for many cinematic companies in Egypt, UAE and Jordan.

Publications in which Karkouti previously had articles published include: Al Hayat and Al Sharq Al Awsat from London, the English Emirates Today, Al Doustor and Nahdit Masr from Egypt, MBC news website, Economy Today from the UAE, Akhbar Al Nogoom, Akhbar Al Adab, Shashaty, Sotoor, Al Ragol Al Youm and Kol Al Nas. This year, Karkouti has started reporting for Variety.