Plot Twist: How One Law School Graduate Used Her Degree to Open Doors in Hollywood
Amena Kheshtchin-Kamel has always been good at telling stories. As a first-generation American, she says she was always drawn to 鈥渆xpressing my voice, and also helping others find their voices.鈥� That was part of what led her to pursue a legal education, and while the kind of storytelling she鈥檚 doing now might surprise you, it鈥檚 a reminder that a law degree can open doors just about anywhere.
Kheshtchin-Kamel鈥檚 father is from Egypt, and her mother is from Iran. In those cultures, she says, 鈥測ou don鈥檛 just say, 鈥楬ey, I鈥檓 gonna be an artist.鈥� There鈥檚 a joke that you don鈥檛 tell Iranian parents you鈥檙e going to be anything but an engineer, lawyer, or doctor.鈥� She had to be thoughtful about her path to becoming an artist and pursuing her passion. That thoughtfulness led her to Arizona State University鈥檚 Sandra Day O鈥機onnor College of Law. 鈥淚 figured that if I failed to make a living as an artist, I could always represent artists,鈥� she says.
Kheshtchin-Kamel did well in law school, and her work there included internships with a judge and at the Arizona Attorney General鈥檚 Office. But she still felt her calling was in telling stories, so for two years after law school, she worked on building her writing portfolio. 鈥淚 felt like a loser,鈥� she says. 鈥淲hen you鈥檙e a writer, there鈥檚 not much tangible success right away, and all my friends were working their way up.鈥�
The hard work paid off, and Kheshtchin-Kamel has begun to find success. She signed with a literary manager this year and already has her first paid Hollywood gig, a screenplay that鈥檚 an adaptation of a book. She has a TV show under consideration for development, and she has a book manuscript under publication review.
A law degree made all those endeavors possible, Kheshtchin-Kamel says. 鈥淲hen I make pitches, the first thing people zone in on is that I have a JD,鈥� she says. 鈥淚t鈥檚 exciting for them, and it tells them a lot. You write a lot in law school, and I think the expectations for your writing are higher as a result. I see people鈥檚 eyes light up, and their tone changes. They want to engage and learn more about me.鈥�
Beyond being a valuable credential, Kheshtchin-Kamel鈥檚 degree has allowed her to write credibly about the world of law. 鈥淚鈥檝e found a way to squeeze a legal storyline into many of my stories, and people love it,鈥� she says. 鈥淚 can write authentically about it because I know how those courtroom scenes should read.鈥� The training she received in law school has made her more meticulous, but also more creative. And pitching ideas in a meeting is much like going in front of a judge, she says, so her legal experience has helped there, too.
Kheshtchin-Kamel has kept one foot in law via her , which seeks to provide a nonpartisan look at issues affecting America and the world. And she鈥檚 a member of 爱游戏体育鈥檚 Student Advisory Group, a panel of law students and recent graduates who look for ways to improve the law school process for candidates and students. She hopes that people who are passionate about law and justice will pursue a legal education, no matter what obstacles they face. 鈥淚t鈥檚 a lot of hours and a lot of dedication,鈥� she says, 鈥渂ut it鈥檚 also a test of discipline, and you need to be a survivor.鈥�
And Kheshtchin-Kamel is proof that there鈥檚 no limit to the stories you can write for yourself with a law degree. 鈥淚f you want to do alternative things as a lawyer, you should absolutely do it,鈥� she says. 鈥淚t makes you stand out. People don鈥檛 think screenwriting and being a lawyer naturally fit together, but those two things together gave me an interesting profile. Before law school, people didn鈥檛 take me as seriously. I鈥檓 still the same person, but after law school, it was a whole different ball game.鈥�
To learn more about what a law degree can do for you, visit 爱游戏体育鈥檚 Discover Law page.