Ryan Higa’s YouTube videos made him a breakout star in a world of competitions. With quick cuts and a self-defacing humor, Ryan Higa’s YouTube videos spawned a huge cult audience, my daughters included. Ryan Higa’s YouTube channel, Nigahiga, has more than 9 million followers. Ryan Higa explained that Nigahiga is a combination of Niga, which means rant in Japanese, and his last name, Higa.

Ryan Higa’s YouTube videos started in the middle of 2006, when he and Sean Fujiyoshi posted lip-synching videos when they were still in high school. The nigahiga YouTube channel was by “The Yabo Crew, which consisted of Ryan Higa, Sean Fujiyoshi, Tim Enos, and Tarynn Nago. By the end of 2010 the nigahiga YouTube channel had 3 million subscribers. It was the first YouTube channel to reach it.

By 2008, Ryan Higa made his first feature-length film, “Sean's Not So Excellent Adventure,” which was produced and directed by Los Angeles filmmaker Richard Van Vleet. It sold out in theaters in California and Hawaii.

Ryan Higa had another breakout YouTube breakout video this year with Naruto, the Movie, a fake video trailer that took the geek world by storm.

Ryan Higa talked at the Singapore at the 2013 Digital Matters conference and said social media is opening up new trials for filmmakers like himself. He said, “Talking to the camera gives the audience a feeling of being more a friend than a fan. I think that’s a lot more powerful.”

Higa says YouTube gives artists like himself a chance to shine in a niche environment. Nigahiga’s nice guys, and they are, give the audience an intimate look into their fringe comic antics. Coming head-to-head with celebrities, Ryan Higa say the digital alternatives to mainstream entertainment allows them to be more at home with their viewers. Mainstream broadcasters usually switch off things like ratings and comment buttons so they don’t get negative comments. Higa welcomes the trolls. They just add more fun to the mix. Higa said, “The power behind YouTubers, people who are personable with their fans, is underestimated.”

Ryan Higa has since gone professional with his home movies as monetization and promotion come easy on YouTube from tie-ins with advertisers.