Engines roar. Dust rises off the dunes like smoke from a prayer. In an era where car content floods every corner of the internet, few creators manage to make engines feel like poetry. Behind the haze of revving engines, a quiet revolution is underway led by Bensaifi Akram and Imed Benkolli, better known as Desharpen. The Algerian duo have turned car videography from mere documentation to something closer to devotion. Every frame burns with adrenaline and artistry, transforming horsepower into heartbeats.
Bensaifi’s story begins far from the gleaming skyline of Dubai, in Algeria, where his father drove for a living and his mother taught in classrooms. “Revenue is very low in Algeria,” he recalls. “But I always knew I wanted to do something bigger.” In 2020, he picked up a camera, documenting restaurants, weddings, and barbershops that sharpened his instincts for detail. By 2022, his ambition led him to Qatar, in time for the World Cup. It wasn’t the glamorous leap of faith it may sound like. Budget constraints forced him to sleep wherever he could, questioning whether he’d made the right move. “Then suddenly, I was on the pitch with David Beckham and FIFA’s trophies,” he says, grinning. “For a football fan like me, that was a dream come true.”
Benkolli built the creative identity that would become Desharpen while pursuing Electrical Engineering full-time at university. “I’ve been studying and managing everything — the editing, creative direction, and Desharpen’s growth — at the same time,” he says. “It’s been a lot of late nights balancing education and building something I believe in. That part really shaped who I am and how we developed our style.” Those long nights turned Desharpen from a side project into a unique visual language born from pure obsession.
Dubai was the next destination to continue pursuing their dreams. In a media landscape saturated with content, their partnership cuts through because it isn’t chasing likes, it’s chasing legacy.
Bensaifi, once the son of a driver and a teacher in Algeria, now shoots for global car brands like Mercedes, BMW, Ford, BYD, Renault and Peugeot. Benkolli, just 20, edits their visuals into stories that breathe. Their breakout signature? Cars in Space. Sleek machines suspended in galaxies and constellations, an aesthetic trick that taps into fandom as much as fantasy. “It’s about emotions,” Akram explains. When you see your favorite car in an impossible place, it becomes unforgettable.”
Ask Bensaifi about his most breathtaking capture, and he’ll take you to the Al Qudra desert at sunrise. “The light was soft, the mist filter gave everything a dreamy look, and my friend was drifting close. I was completely dusted —my gear too — but I was loving it,” he laughs. The result was a Mercedes shot bathed in gold shadows, an image as raw as it was ethereal.
He’s candid about the industry, too. “The hardest part is that real creatives aren’t getting the appreciation they deserve compared to lower-quality influencers,” Bensaifi admits. But he tempers criticism with respect: “I respect everybody. What matters to me is making my family proud.” For Benkolli, it’s simpler: “As someone who’s interested in cars and technology, my vision is to always bring something different to the market. Behind every video is a story, it’s about delivering feelings.”
If Bensaifi is the eye, then Benkolli is the polish. Soft-spoken, analytical, and intuitive, the young editor fine-tunes each frame until motion feels like music. “I feel like my work speaks more than my words,” he affirms. “Every video needs to be smooth. Every shot should deliver a feeling.
That’s my obsession.”
In a hyper-digital age where trends flicker and fade, Bensaifi and Benkolli’s work remind us that emotion remains the ultimate engine. Their films don’t just capture motion; they capture meaning. In the endless scroll of the internet, that might just be the rarest thing left.