Name, Age, City and State: Kyle Prohaska, 22, Ransomville, NY

Job-title: CEO, Praise Pictures Inc.

Web/blog site URL: www.kyleprohaska.com  www.lifeofkyle.com  www.praisepictures.com

Give us your job description in 25 words or less. I’m a filmmaker, web designer, graphic artist, and various other things wrapped into one package.

Describe a typical workday. I work from home in my bedroom so the workdays involve me bumming around in my PJ’s while I work the daily grind. I’m normally up late and sleeping in. When you’re your own boss, there are no set hours. It’s easy to pull a 18 hour day without realizing it.

What led you to realize that you wanted to do this type of work? I’ve always wanted to since I was a kid and went to the movies. All the other art/media related jobs I do for myself or other people were birthed from an interest in film and storytelling.

Did you have any heroes or mentors in your industry that you admired? Absolutely! Pick most famous directors and odds are they shaped something for me by the films they’ve made and the way they’ve made them. Steven Spielberg especially, and not just for the films (which are incredible) but who he is as a man. There’s a reason people speak about him the way they do. He seems extremely generous and warm, but at the same time under that is a profoundly intelligent man, who’s genius has molded modern cinema in more ways than one. Him amongst many others, became the heroes of my career path. I owe them a lot.

What type of education or training was required to land your job? No college for what I do. I started working on this career path since I was an early teen, maybe 14 years old. I learned about computers, software, filmmaking, etc. Anything I could get my hands on to learn whether it be books, commentaries on film DVDs, asking questions via email or visiting chat rooms. Nothing was going to stop me!

What do you love most about your job? I like owning my own company and working for myself. There are benefits (like working in PJ’s) when you work from home. It’s a dream job in many ways.

What one part of your job do you wish you could hire someone else to do? It would be nice to have another manager. One of the biggest problems in doing so many jobs and working on so many things is just the amount of stuff to keep in your head. There are always a multitude of different things “in progress” that I need to keep track of. Sometimes things get lost in the shuffle, which isn’t good. So having another brain around would be helpful.

What advice would you give to teenagers wanting to get into your field of work? Even outside of my field, I would simply tell others to specifically ask the Lord what He wants them to do with your life. Forget your wants, your dreams, what other people are telling you is “smart.” Eternal value is the only value that matters, and if you’re not doing what the Lord has called you to do, it’s all been a waste. Once you find out what that is, you need to run at it with everything you got! Don’t pay attention to what’s “possible,” shoot for what’s “impossible.” I’m lucky to have a career starting now early in life, earlier than most people do. Many my age are still trying to figure out what to do with life. I know many who are 26+ who still don’t know. If your a teenager and you’re reading this, start now! So what if you’re in high school? One of the greatest tragedies out there facing teenagers and other young people is they’re repeatedly discouraged from trying great things because they’re “too young,” or “not mature enough.” Many teenagers are held back from starting growth as an adult until they’re out of high school. Adulthood starts now! Start building your life now! Adolescence is a mad-made gap in the age spectrum where you’re not expected to do anything special. Break the mold!

How does your job allow you to use your God-given gifts? It allows me to use all the creative gifts God has given me for His Purposes and His Glory. There is nothing more exciting than knowing my natural gifts are being used to give Glory to the one who gave the gifts to me. It’s an ability to give back! That’s a Blessing!

Do you have any hobbies or off-hours pursuits that teenagers would find of interest? Not really. I’m lucky enough to have my hobby be my job! :)

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