Education
New York University; University of Pennsylvania.
New York University; University of Pennsylvania.
He is best known as creator and co-creator of the Karate Kid and Transporter franchises, as well as the 2008 action thriller Taken. Kamen is a frequent collaborator of French writer, director and producer Luc Besson—his co-creator on The Fifth Element, The Transporter, and Taken. The two first worked together on the Natalie Portman and Jean Reno thriller The Professional.
After the success of Fifth Element, Besson invited Kamen to join him in his goal of creating a "mini-studio" in Europe, making "movies that would travel, international movies, you know, action movies."
Kamen grew up in the Bronx borough of New York City.
He received a Bachelor of Arts from New York University and a Doctor of Philosophy in American Studies from The University of Pennsylvania. Kamen lives in New York, owns a vineyard in Sonoma, and commutes to work in Paris at Besson’s headquarters.