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Hi, I’m Kyle Priebe, and I’ve made a movie about my
life. I call it, My Life as an Autistic Boy. Its now available
in both DVD and VHS video tape. |
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Its all about me and what its like to have Autism. There’s good things
about Autism, and things that are confusing, and I talk about them in my
movie. I tell the story of my life
from preschool to beginning high school, and my struggles to understand and
to make friends, and my successes. My teachers, therapists, family and friends have all said
that it’s a great movie, and now they use it to teach other people about
Autism. I like that. People laugh, and sometimes cry, when they
watch my movie. I’m not sure why, but
they say it’s a good thing. Here’s my first teacher, Julie, and my therapist, Maria. They’re in the movie, too. Julie is on the right. |
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My dad helped me make my movie, but I narrated it by
myself. I’m proud that I won a Temple Grandin Award from Future
Horizons, Inc. http://www.futurehorizons-autism.com
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My mom says that this is a very special award given to people
with Autism or Asperger’s Syndrome who have made an outstanding contribution
to their family or community. Here’s a picture of me smiling with my award. I feel special that I made this movie and
people like it. |
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I want people to know about me, and that means knowing
about Autism. If you want to buy a copy of My Life as an Autistic Boy,
the cost is $40, and that includes mailing.
Its 18 minutes and 26 seconds long. It is available in either DVD or
VHS formats. Tell me which one your
want. And be sure to send your address
so I can mail it to you. Send the check or money order to Kyle Priebe, You can email me at KylePriebe@adelphia.net
or my dad at d.priebe@adelphia.net I hope you like it.
I worked very hard on it. Thank
you. Kyle Here are some things parents and teachers have said about
my movie. They liked it! My Life as an Autistic Boy - A Few Customer Quotes My name is Becky and I am the mother of a three year old boy with autism. This morning I sat and watched it while my son had therapy in his bedroom, as he does every day. Like the others you mentioned in your video, I cried. You did a beautiful job and you have given me so much hope. It is hard raising my little boy, not having any idea what his future will be like. He has sensory issues too and is just learning how to talk. I am so thankful that you and your dad made this movie - it has encouraged me and reminded me that there is so much joy ahead for our son too. Thank you for sharing your story and I pray that you have a wonderful summer. Sincerely, Becky S. Hi Kyle, Hello
Kyle, I
received and watched your movie yesterday.
My husband, my son and I enjoyed watching your movie very much. I think that you are a great example to
other individuals with autism and a great resource to teach others about
autism. I’ll be showing your movie to
the staff of a Middle School this week and other schools in the future. Thank you for sharing your life with
us!!! Your friend, Nadya Thank
you, Kyle! I received the DVD, and I
loved it. I watched it with my son; I know it will help him realize
there are lots of people in the world like him. … Sharie Dear Kyle, Thank you so much for sending the DVD the other day. I enjoyed watching it. You did an especially great job on defining autism. Enjoy your Spring break! Laura V.
Dear
Kyle, I have
just finished watching your DVD and wanted to let you know how much I enjoyed
it. I am sure that your video will have a positive impact
on many people. Thank you for sharing your story! Best
Wishes, Denise W. Hi Kyle, I just wanted you to know I received your movie yesterday and I thought it was very good. Your pictures were great and I loved hearing your story. Thanks again for sharing your life with autism. I can't wait to show it to the rest of the Autism Support Group. Vicky S.,
Hi Kyle, Newspaper Stories
about Kyle: Right here are 2 newspaper stories about me and my movie, My Life as an Autistic Boy, and the
Temple Grandin Award I won. |
http://www.venturacountystar.com/vcs/co_valley/0,1375,VCS_166,00.html
Movie on his experiences wins national honor By Maria Gonzalez,
mgonzalez@VenturaCountyStar.com Kyle Priebe settles into a
leather armchair and lifts his legs on the armrest to relax his fractured
knee. The 15-year-old then speaks enthusiastically about some of his favorite
things: playing video games, spending time with friends and thinking about
his secret crush. It's talking about his crush that brings a full smile to his face, revealing a mouth full of braces.
"She's really nice and she's
very beautiful," he said, eyes shining behind wire-rim glasses. Kyle lives the life of a typical
ninth-grader at Autism is a neurological disorder
that impacts the brain and affects how a person interacts and communicates.
People with autism sometimes have problems speaking and socializing.
According to the Autism Society of America, about 1.5 million people in the As a boy, Kyle disliked loud
noises but loved spinning around fast. The affection for moving fast evolved
into a love of roller coasters. He hated being teased and would respond by
lifting his fists or pinching himself. He describes his challenges and
successes in a video he made with his father's help last Christmas, called
"My Life as an Autistic Boy." The video was a Christmas gift to
his family, but Kyle's father also entered it in a national competition for
autistic youths. In February, Kyle learned he was one of about 10 winners of
the Temple Grandin Award, given through Future Horizons, an autism publishing
company. The award is presented to autistic youths who have had a significant
achievement in the past year. Kyle narrates the video, an
18-minute description of his life with autism as seen through childhood
pictures. One of the pictures in the video
shows 2-year-old Kyle soaking in the bathtub, with alphabet letters lining
the inside of the tub. Although he stopped talking, Kyle could still recite
the alphabet. He lined up the letters in the tub on his own, his father,
Darrel Priebe, said. Priebe said Kyle threw tantrums
as a child out of frustration when he couldn't talk. "When you don't have words,
you still have a lot of feelings," said Priebe, who works as a school
psychologist at the And Kyle's natural curiosity
about the people around him helped him learn. Growing up meant relearning how
to talk, learning how to smile for school pictures and figuring out how to
interact with other people. "I didn't understand what
was going on around me," Kyle says in his video. He describes what is frustrating
about being autistic: loud sounds, such as crowds singing "Happy
Birthday," or the crash of ocean waves. On the plus side is "making
movies in my head that I can watch any time I want to." "He calls it 'filming it,'
" his father explained. "When he doesn't
remember something he says, 'I lost the film.' " Today, Kyle has many interests,
including video games, romantic movies, hiking and bowling. It was on a
recent bowling trip that he over-swung his bowling ball, hit his knee and
chipped part of his kneecap, which has left him on crutches for his spring
break. While resting at home this week,
Kyle took a phone call from a friend. Even a casual conversation on the phone
is something Kyle had to learn through the years, his father said. Kyle's eagerness to chat about
his favorite subjects makes it difficult to imagine a time he didn't speak at
all. "Now I talk a lot -- too
much, my mom says," Kyle jokes in the video. At the end comes Kyle's favorite
part of the video: his dedication to "love, romance and my crush." "I wanted my movie to be
more wonderful," Kyle said. "For people to understand the feelings
in my heart." For a copy of Kyle's video, send
an e-mail to kylepriebe@ yahoo.com. |
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http://www.toacorn.com/News/2004/0401/Community/021.html
Student documents life with autism, wins
award
By Michael Picarella, April 1, 2004
pic@theacorn.com
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On Sept. 5, 1988, Darrel and Nina Priebe became the proud parents of their second child, a son named Kyle. He was a healthy baby who seemed to be developing normally. Kyle learned to count and could even list all the letters in the alphabet by the time he was 2, his parents said.
But according to Darrel Priebe, "As an infant, we saw unusual behaviors … We didn’t think anything of it."
During his second year of life, Kyle lost his ability to speak and understand language. He was diagnosed with autism, Priebe said, and the unusual behaviors he had been displaying began to make sense.
Autism is a developmental neurological disorder that affects areas of functioning in the brain. Experts say anyone can be born with it.
Before Kyle was diagnosed with autism, the Priebe family would go to the beach and Kyle would constantly scream.
"We couldn’t figure out why he was so unhappy," said Priebe, a
school psychologist in
As a result of his condition, Kyle had to be taught his language skills all over again. According to his parents, Kyle’s daily struggle to speak his mind and comprehend the world around him was intense.
"I tried to get him to sit down and watch a romantic movie, something
like ‘Sleepless in
Kyle, who is now a ninth-grader at
Recently, he began expressing himself in ways that he never knew he could.
"At the beginning of December, I said, ‘Kyle, it’d be really good if you had a gift to give to people this year,’" Priebe said. "Kyle doesn’t like spending his money on gifts—you might call him thrifty or you might call him cheap. So I said, ‘Look, you don’t like spending money on gifts, so why don’t you make something for everyone?’"
Priebe, who is a home video enthusiast with his own editing software, suggested making a movie starring Kyle.
"He said, ‘Yeah, a movie.’ And then he pops out with the title, ‘My Life as an Autistic Boy,’" Priebe said.
Kyle and his dad produced the movie and put it on a DVD to give to the family at Christmas.
"There’s a part of him that wants to be popular and accepted—he calls it being famous," Priebe said. "He saw the movie as a way to accomplish that."
The movie is approximately 20 minutes and it documents Kyle’s life from birth until December 2003. "My Life as an Autistic Boy," narrated by Kyle himself, explains the day-to-day living of an autistic child and how Kyle and his family have learned to cope.
Priebe said the movie-making process proved rewarding.
"It was neat to go back and look at Kyle’s life in perspective," Priebe said. "We talked about what would go into the movie. I asked him if there were parts about autism that he liked. I asked him what parts were okay and what parts were hard for him ... We tried to remember some of the stories and the issues and the problems."
Kyle screened "My Life as an Autistic Boy" last Christmas and his family loved it.
"Kyle was very anxious when we showed it," Priebe said. "I had to keep telling him that everyone would love it." The family gave their son a standing ovation.
"He felt so good about it," Priebe said. "It really helped him overcome the anxiety about people not liking him because of his autism."
Priebe and his wife later nominated their son for the national Temple Grandin Award from Future Horizons, Inc. Future Horizons, a publishing company specializing in books about autism, awards those individuals with autism or Asperger’s Syndrome who have made an outstanding contribution to family, community and self.
Kyle won the award.
"My Life as an Autistic Boy" has since become a hit. Parents of autistic children and teachers who conduct courses in autism have requested the DVD so they can learn from Kyle’s experiences.
Doctors say approximately one of every 500 babies in the world is born with autism. The disorder is permanent. There is no cure and the symptoms change over time as the individual matures and learns. Doctors are unable to pinpoint the cause of it, Priebe said.
As part of his job, Priebe works with special education kids including those with autism. His experience with Kyle has enriched his work, he said.
Kyle received a 3.5 grade point average from
Today, Kyle is striving to be like other teenagers. He has a crush on a girl and has many friends both autistic and neuro-typical. He says he enjoys bowling, playing video games and watching romantic movies.
But it hasn’t been easy.
Kyle’s life as an autistic boy has been a special journey indeed.
Those interested in watching Kyle’s movie can contact him via e-mail at KylePriebe@adelphia.net