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Arts & Entertainment

The Hopeful Outlier

15-year-old video artist Mike Meyer isn't waiting to grow up.

In 2008, Malcolm Gladwell released a book called Outliers. The book examines the factors of success, looking at the stories of everyone from Bill Gates to The Beatles. Mike Meyer is a soon to be sophomore at and an aspiring video producer. The book is one of his favorites.

Outliers might not be the top pick of your average 15-year-old. But Meyer’s not your average 15-year-old. He opts for documentaries over summer blockbusters and mentorship programs over sleeping until noon. He can’t yet legally drive, but that’s not stopping him from pursuing video gigs or trying to figure out what it will take to be the CEO of a company someday. 

Meyer first started playing around with videography when he was 12, filming his friends doing “crazy stunt things.” More recently, he made a , earned an honorable mention nod for a video in a nationwide CSPAN contest, and has been working with local company Urban World Management on projects including a documentary about families who have been impacted by incarceration.

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Roberta Ryan of Urban World Management looks past Meyer’s age and at his talent.

“Mike has incredible insight and is able to capture and bring emotion with mostly every project he creates,” Ryan said.

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A chance meeting with entrepreneur and executive producer Steve Gatena at a Lamborghini dealership in Los Angeles last summer (Gatena was filming a commercial; Meyer was on vacation and filming for fun) lead to a brief online internship and inspired Meyer to get more serious about making videos.

Meyer said Gatena taught him that a video should do four things: engage, entertain, inform and motivate–and that a lot of people miss motivation. Motivation is one thing, however, no one needs to remind Meyer about. 

“I’ve been told countless times I need to relax and chill and enjoy my high school experience, but I really enjoy where I’m at right now and where I’m going,” Meyer said. 

Meyer’s first paying gig in video production was last summer for Lake Superior Helicopters. On a visit with his dad, he brought his video camera to play around with. The next thing he knew, he was asked to film a video for the company

Meyer’s father, Kurt Meyer, said his son has always been focused, never holding back when he discovered an interest. And though Mike’s goals may be lofty, his father doesn’t see them as out of reach.

“I don’t doubt a bit that he’ll do it all–not a bit,” Kurt Meyer said.

With no shortage of drive or confidence, Meyer’s biggest challenge is that, at 15, he’s not legally able to do some of the things it takes to run a business. 

“Age is probably my biggest limitation,” Meyer said. “Not being 16 has its own limits, and then not being 18, not being 21.” 

For the future, once he can drive a car by himself, vote, and buy a beer, Meyer said he may continue to pursue video production, stating an interest in becoming CEO of a video production company. Or, he said, maybe he’ll write a book. Maybe he’ll make a movie.  

Sara Etzel, Meyer’s Project Lead the Way engineering teacher for his Introduction to Engineering Design class this past school year and a coach on his robotics team doesn’t doubt he’ll do something on that level. 

“What he’s going to do in the future? World, watch out,” Etzel said. “He’s going to be a dynamic individual.”

In many ways, he already is. Driven by big dreams and the passion to pursue them, Meyer keeps the big picture in focus and tries to grow each day.  

“Every day, with everyone I encounter, I try to learn something,” Meyer said.

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