We recently connected with Kyle Thompson and have shared our conversation below.

Kyle , looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. How did you learn to do what you do? Knowing what you know now, what could you have done to speed up your learning process? What skills do you think were most essential? What obstacles stood in the way of learning more?

As a Self taught artist, I spend countless amounts of hours trying to, “figure it out.” I will be honest, some days are better then most. But, I’ve unlocked the secrets to how I learned my craft.

As cliché as this may sound the more you try, the sooner you will be able to accomplish the things you’ve only dreamed about. When learning any craft, there are no shortcuts and no corners to cut. Making art to your maximum possible potential comes with a few rules.

Rule number 1, get over the fear of failing because you’re going to fail.

Rule number 2, study the greats. Learn what they did and apply them to your daily life and creativity
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Rule number 3, Never give up. being persistent is the super powers you need to figure it out.

Rule number 4. Always remain a student. even the greatest of artists seek advice from those they admire.

along my journey, I’ve applied these rules and a few more to help me maintain a career in what I do and my consistency in being better in my craft everyday.

Kyle , love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

In 2010, After graduating high school I knew that Art was something I wanted to pursue. I tried every medium that I possibly could to help kickstart a dream career In art from trying to become a rapper to doing tattoos. But there was one medium that Changed my life and creativity forever. at 19 years old, I was a slowly failing college student with a, “C/D” average in grading. My mother and step father were stressed about my schooling but knew that school wasn’t my strong suit and that I needed to figure it out soon with what I wanted to do with my life. I remember that IO was walking home one day from school with a friend of mines who was an inspiring rapper ( Tange Lomax. She was in need of photos for her upcoming release of her early songs and asked if I could take some photos of her on her iPhone. Having no idea how to Set up a picture, i just did what I thought looked great for the photo, something that I would do for myself if I could.

After the photos were taken, she stated that these photos were amazing and that I should look into getting a camera and pursue a career in photography. Immediately when i got home, i went to my parents closet and grabbed the families ( Fujifilm Finepix S4080 ) Digital Camera, went outside and started to practice. My Mother and father loved gardening, So i used flowers around my house as subjects. I remember falling so deeply in love with the outcome of the photos. It felt so natural to me.

Unfortunately, Living in a small city in North Carolina, there wern’t many jobs the consisted of building a career in Photography, My father recommended that I should join the United States Marine Corps, and use that as a tool to help build my Dream career, and that my friends is when my life completely changed for the better.

Now in 2023 after a successful military career, obtaining a college degree in cinematography and moving to Los Angeles, CA, I am now a Full time Post Production editor, VFX artist and 3D illustrator.

I try my best to allow my work to speak for itself. I leave open Interpretation throughout all of my mediums as an artist and focus mainly as an asset or problem solver for any projects that require post production. My love for film and understanding compositions, lighting and storytelling is when helps me creatively separate my work form others. in 2024, I will be releasing a graphic novel that will help my supporters and people who have never heard of me seek my skills and creativity to its ultimate potential.

What do you think is the goal or mission that drives your creative journey?

So far in my creative journey, I’ve been working really hard to create more freely. My goal next year it to build a brand that will allow me to express my art and different mediums a lot more freely without having to afford my time.

What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?

the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in my opinion is the ability to relate to others through my art. I love music, and combining the music i love with my Art really helps me as a creative travel through peoples minds and relate to a beautiful moment they once experienced. Early on, i stopped seeking validation from others. I knew that the more i created, the more my art would gravitate to those who appreciated it most.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.threehoursago.com
• Instagram: https://instagram.com/threehoursago