Entry-Level Positions for Aspiring Attorneys and Filmmakers
For entry-level legal work, Michael highlights law firm clerkships as readily available, stating that "law firms routinely...take on people to clerk from undergrad". In filmmaking, internships at studios like Sony or production companies, focusing on business affairs or production assistant roles ("PAs, that's a big one"), offer valuable entry points, with Michael noting the varied career paths of their friends, highlighting that "everyone took such different paths".
Entry-Level Jobs, Networking, Film Production, Legal Profession, Internships
Advizer Information
Name
Job Title
Company
Undergrad
Grad Programs
Majors
Industries
Job Functions
Traits
Michael Erike
Attorney & Filmmaker
Bailey Law Firm & YachtKlub Productions
Loyola Marymount University
Sandra Day O’Connor College Of Law - J.D.
Finance
Arts, Entertainment & Media, Law
Legal
Scholarship Recipient, Greek Life Member
Video Highlights
1. Entry-level positions in law firms often include internships or clerkships for undergraduates.
2. Many studios and production companies offer internships for undergraduates interested in film, particularly in business affairs or as production assistants (PAs).
3. Networking and attending a well-regarded school can increase opportunities in both the legal and film industries.
Transcript
What entry-level positions are there in the legal profession that an undergraduate college student might consider?
For the legal profession, I know most law firms and even companies have interim positions. This is true for companies within different attorney fields.
For example, intellectual property attorneys are a common example. They have many positions available, and the intel is great. Law firms also routinely take on people to clerk from undergrad. I graduated in 2016, but that summer, I was already at a law firm.
I guess technically it could be for undergrad or graduate students. Even though I was younger, I still could have been there. So for lawyers, it's easy.
The filmmaking world is more nuanced, but still very possible. I know at Sony, through Lily, who is a great lady and possibly in top business affairs, there's a lot of shuffling around. She definitely takes grad and law students.
I think even undergrads who want to be on the business or creative side of making deals can find opportunities. She's always looking for people. The internship route is a great way to start for those who want to go into the film world, especially from the studio level.
Production companies like A24 also take on interns. I remember seeing they have acquisition interns. A24 is always looking for projects from new people and likes having college intern staff to help them.
Regular production companies obviously have PAs, which is a big one: being a production assistant. Many of my friends who went through the film program at LMU started that way.
It's funny looking back; friends who are in the industry took such different paths, and it all turned out well. My friend Mikayla was a PA at another place when she was a sophomore. Then, during her junior or senior year, she was at Sony in the animation department. Now she's an animation executive there and has been for a few years.
My brother and I are not in animation, but that's still really cool. So yeah, there's a lot out there, which is pretty cool. Especially coming from a well-regarded school, that kind of helps with opening doors too.