Kristina Lesik, Business Affairs Attorney - Los Angeles

How long have you been at The Third Floor?

Almost 2 years

What first sparked your interest in entertainment (movies/games) as a career?

To be very honest, I never imagined or thought that I will work in entertainment. When I completed my Masters in Law and passed the California Bar Exam (after already having been an attorney in Montreal, Canada for years), I started looking for a career that is outside of the typical "attorney" career as I already worked in a law firm for almost 5 years before. I started looking for an attorney position but in house and not in a law firm. I stumbled on a post by The Third Floor and when I went to the website I thought it was so interesting and decided to apply.

How did you approach your training and education into the world of visualization and entertainment?

I have a Bachelors in Commerce and in Law. I also have a Masters in Business Law where I took a class like music law. As for entertainment specifically, I learn a lot in my day to day at the office. I learn daily from the people I communicate with at the office, the attorneys and producers working for our clients and just reading more and keeping up to date.

What led you to work in the visualization and entertainment industry?

Like I said above, when I saw on The Third Floor's website what visualization was all about I thought it was so cool and outside of the box of the typical job for an attorney and that was so exciting for me.

What do you do to keep your skills relevant?

I constantly do my Continuing Legal Education credits and I try to take some entertainment/intellectual property courses in order to stay up to date with my knowledge. Also, by constantly interacting with people at the office such as the Business Affairs team, it helps me understand better what we do in visualization and how we actually do the work for our clients from storyboards to animation.

What drew you to The Third Floor?

I was very attracted by such a unique field in entertainment and decided to try it out. When I came to my interview and met with people from the Third Floor I loved how different it felt to be around creative individuals. I loved the office setup and how it was not like a typical office.

What do you love most about your current job at The Third Floor?

I love the people I work with. I love the fact that people at The Third Floor appreciate me and value my input. I love the fact that I can easily talk to my superiors and that they would actually listen to my advice and input.

Are you currently in the same position you started in at The Third Floor? If not what has your career progression been while at TTF?

I am in the same position but I have learned A TON from the day I started until where I am today. I also have a lot more load and responsibility that is growing on a daily basis.

What advice would you give someone looking to get into this industry?

You definitely need to love the entertainment industry to work in it. It would be ideal to have at least some basic knowledge in order to understand more but look at me I learned everything from this industry while working at The Third Floor.

What is the best thing about Los Angeles?

Los Angeles has absolutely and by far the BEST weather ever! I absolutely love the fact that I can go skiing and swimming in the ocean all in one weekend. LA also has so many amazing hikes which I adore!

What were you doing before you came to The Third Floor?

I completed a Masters in Law from UCLA and passed the California Bar Exam

How would you describe the culture at The Third Floor?

The Third Floor has an informal and laid back culture. TTF values its people and does so much for us! There is a positive work environment and it makes it pleasurable to come to work every day.

Where do you draw your inspiration from?

There are many amazing women in the entertainment industry as well as in the legal field. However, I draw inspiration from a close friend who is also an attorney. She is a little bit older than me and definitely has more experiences but she is amazing in many ways and she is definitely a role model in many aspects not just for my legal career but my overall life balance. Her positive attitude to everything in life reminds me of the valuable teachings I learned when I attended the Tony Robbins events whom I think is absolutely phenomenal.

What piece of media was the biggest influence on you as a kid? As an adult?

As a kid, definitely, Walt Disney's Lion King played a major role and it totally mesmerized me!

As an adult, I really enjoy Suits, aside from the fact that Harvey Spector is quite attractive, his bad-ass attitude and behavior just makes it hopeful there is some fun to being an attorney (even though the reality is nothing like the show).

Name one fun fact about yourself that we may not know!

My brother and I together did the Tony Robbins Fire Walk on hot coal (which can reach temperatures as high as 1,000 degrees Fahrenheit) without a single burn and all that just with the mindset attitude and how to overcome fear thought by him. This fire walk is a way to show a person that you are capable of much more then you believe - one of the scariest but most valuable experiences of my life by the way!

----------------------------------------------

Intrigued by what you hear about The Third Floor? Interested in joining our team?

Check out our Career Page and apply!