Music artist
Cairokee
Cairokee is an Egyptian rock band formed in 2003 by childhood friends. Their first major hit was Sout El Horeya, and their music has developed across successive albums while remaining connected to Cairo.
Explore their workMusic video · 4:39
Layla
Directed by Yassin Koptan.
Watch on YouTube
Watch on YouTube Full music video · Opens on YouTube
01 / The video
A love that endures.
An elderly man wakes to find that his partner has died. Unable to accept the loss, he tries to bring her back in Yassin Koptan’s interpretation of Cairokee’s Layla.
- Format
- Music video
- Running time
- 4:39
- Artist
- Cairokee
- Filmmaker
- Yassin Koptan
- Kitchen Films release
- 3 June 2021
- YouTube views · as of October 21, 2026
- 6,565
02 / The voices behind the work
Meet the artist.
03 / Behind the camera
Meet the filmmaker.
Yassin Koptan
Yassin Koptan is an Egyptian filmmaker from Alexandria and a Kitchen Films co-founder. His early skateboarding videos led into filmmaking, and he later studied at the New York Film Academy.
Explore their work04 / More from the video
Around the work.
Screenplays, production photographs, cast and making-of notes are added as they are verified. Here is what this page holds today.
- Scripts & documents
Before the frame.
5 project documents to read and download.
Explore the documents - Behind the scenes
Between takes.
Behind-the-scenes photographs have not been added to this page.
Not on this page yet - Cast & performers
On screen.
Cast details are not currently available in the release record.
Not on this page yet - Making of
Behind the story.
2 notes on how the video was made.
Read the notes
05 / Project documentsFrom page
From page
to screen.
Project materials shared by Yassin Koptan. These documents contain story spoilers.
StoryboardScene 5 — Storyboard sample
Three illustrated panels planning a Scene 5 sequence, with camera directions and action notes.
Floor plansScenes 2 & 3 — Floor-plan samples
Plans for the living room and garden sequences showing camera positions, shot sizes and lens choices.
06 / Making the film
Behind the story.
A love story in vivid colour
Koptan chose one of Cairokee’s more intimate songs and a bright, near-neon palette. In his NYFA interview, he described wanting to explore the endurance of love rather than take the expected boy-meets-girl approach.
Read the sourceTwo days in Los Angeles
Kitchen Films’ release description places the production in Los Angeles. Koptan told NYFA that he directed, produced and wrote the video, which was filmed over two days.
Read the sourceMade together.
- Music artist
- Cairokee
- Written by
- Marwan Mokbel · Yassin Koptan
- Directed, produced & edited by
- Yassin Koptan
- Presented by
- Kitchen Films
Sources & further reading 7 references
Release and profile information is drawn from the sources below. Photo sources are credited alongside the images.
- Kitchen Films — Layla — checked
- NYFA — Yassin Koptan on making Layla — checked
- Cairokee — official Spotify artist profile — checked
- Yassin Koptan — filmmaker interview — checked
- Yassin Koptan — SAHARA Magazine author profile — checked
- Cairokee: Layla — IMDb — checked
- Yassin Koptan — project documents on Behance — checked
Spend a little time in this world.
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