Caitlin Hill

Caitlin Hill
Born
Caitlin Alexandra Hill

(1988-09-08) 8 September 1988 (age 36)
Brisbane, Queensland, Australia
OccupationsYouTube personality
Years active2006–present
Known forComedy, vlogging, lip sync
YouTube information
Channel
Subscribers70.4 thousand[1]
Total views42.4 million[1]
Last updated: 1 October 2024
Websitestarnow.com.au/actorcaitlinhill

Caitlin Alexandra Hill (born 8 September 1988) is an Australian YouTube personality under the name TheHill88. She produces, edits and uploads her videos from her home in Brisbane, and since 2008 from New York City.

Dubbed "the goofy princess of cyberspace" by Australia's version of 60 Minutes, Hill maintains a channel on YouTube. By November 2008, her videos had a cumulative view count of over 17 million.[2]

In addition to maintaining a channel on YouTube, Hill is the Chief Creative Officer of Hitviews, a website and new media business venture, which she co-founded with Walter Sabo.[3] The site allows marketers direct access to internet celebrities such as Kevin Nalty and Cory Williams. Bob Weinstein is among the site's investors.[2]

YouTube fame

Hill submitted her first video to YouTube 16 August 2006, as a fan response to popular web serial lonelygirl15.[4] A day later, Hill began to assemble fans of her own upon uploading Re: LonelyGirl: Lazydork is Better Than You (posted 17 August 2006), a video response to YouTube comedian Richard Stern, received over 1,000,000 views before September 2006. Described by The Age as "cheesy rap", YouTube featured the video and her 14 short videos collectively received over 4,000,000 views.[5][6]

She has credited Zach Braff, Brooke Brodack and Bree, a lonelygirl15 character played by Jessica Rose, for inspiring her to join the YouTube community.[7][8]

After sustaining a sizable viewership on YouTube for nearly a year, Hill became one of the first twenty to thirty YouTube users to join the YouTube partnership program in May 2007.[9] This status gives the user "the ability to share in ad revenue".[10]

In September 2007, Hill announced on her MySpace blog that 2007 would be her last year in the partnership program, stating:

I'll try really hard to make 2007 my last year of YouTube. Sure I'll keep TheHill88 up, but I wont force myself to make videos. I'll only ever do them when I want to and ONLY when I have a really good idea. So I suppose it's not my last year...but its my last committed year. I'll have to end the partnership and everything....for now, I need to focus all my attention on the REAL WORLD and my goals.[11]

By October 2007, YouTube no longer listed Hill as a revenue sharing partner.

In addition to her own output, Hill plays a recurring role in Choose Your Own Tube, a YouTube serial produced and directed by Remi Broadway.[12]

In July 2007, she featured in 'Disgrace', a music-video created by the band Coldstone.[13]

Also in July 2007, Hill played herself in Lisa Donovan's comedy sketch LisaNova Does YouTube, in which she and other popular video bloggers are kidnapped by Donovan and made to comment on thousands of YouTube user profiles.[14]

In August 2018, Caitlin made a return to YouTube and relaunched her channel with the series "Snacks and Facts with Caitlin Hill".[15]

Off YouTube

Hill played an unpaid but central part in the independent horror movie The Girl in the Red Dress,[5] featuring Remi Broadway, among others.

She plied her YouTube fame to The Darfur Wall, earning the nonprofit website hundreds of hits in a period of two weeks.[16] Her fansite ranked at #2 in advocacy points.[17]

In February 2007, Hill visited California to take part in the "As One" YouTube gathering in San Francisco.[18] She appeared on Tom Green Live with "Weird Al" Yankovic and Mike Vallely during her stay.

Over the course of repeated travels from Australia to the United States, Hill has auditioned for roles in several big-budget Hollywood movies.[19]

Hill was cast for the role of Lucy Grimm in the remake of Plan 9 from Outer Space, whose teaser trailer was released on 9 September 2009 to coincide with the 50th anniversary of the original, but pulled out.[20]

In 2008, Caitlin Hill announced in multiple videos that she moved to New York City, New York.

On 8 December 2008, Hill became the youngest recipient of the National Arts Club Medal of Honor.[21]

On 20 April 2009, Hill briefly became the new host of the vlog Rocketboom, replacing the outgoing Joanne Colan. However, Rocketboom producer Andrew Baron stated that they were unable to reach agreement with Hitviews to keep Hill at that time, although they hoped to reach a deal.[22] Molly Templeton subsequently replaced Hill on Rocketboom.[23]

Hill performed with a Brisbane Bollywood Performance Team, Dance Masala.[24]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b "About Snacks and Facts with Caitlin Hill". YouTube.
  2. ^ a b Myers, Jack "YouTube's Biggest Viral Video Stars Sign With Hitviews to Tap Into Marketers' Budgets" The Huffington Post, 25 November 2008
  3. ^ "Hitviews Offers Brands a New, Proven Way to Deliver Message Inside the Most Popular Online Videos". Archived from the original on 23 April 2009. Retrieved 18 September 2014.
  4. ^ "Re: I Probably Shouldn't Post This..." YouTube. Archived from the original on 22 September 2006. Retrieved 18 September 2014.
  5. ^ a b Hutcheon, Stephen (4 September 2006). "Caitlin raps her way to YouTube success – web – Technology – theage.com.au". The Age. Archived from the original on 22 April 2009. Retrieved 9 March 2010.
  6. ^ "Re: LonelyGirl: Lazydork is Better Than You". Archived from the original on 20 August 2006. Retrieved 18 September 2014 – via YouTube.
  7. ^ "CC licensed video interview with Caitlin Hill". Archived from the original on 12 March 2010. Retrieved 18 September 2014.
  8. ^ "Unexpected: Episode 100 – TheHill88 & Ian Crossland". Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 18 September 2014.
  9. ^ "Video interview with Caitlin Hill, by Abbie Santiago of BusinessBoomer". Archived from the original on 15 December 2021. Retrieved 18 September 2014 – via YouTube.
  10. ^ "The YouTube Partner Programme". YouTube. Retrieved 16 October 2008.
  11. ^ "Fading away...2007 will be my last year on YouTube." Archived 29 October 2007 at the Wayback Machine Caitlin Hill's blog on MySpace 21 September 2007
  12. ^ "ChooseYourOwnTube.com". Retrieved 18 September 2014.
  13. ^ "coldstonemusic.com". Archived from the original on 2 June 2013. Retrieved 18 September 2014.
  14. ^ Behrens, Zach "LisaNova Kidnaps Perez Hilton" Archived 28 August 2007 at the Wayback Machine LAist.com Archived 25 August 2007 at the Wayback Machine, the Los Angeles version of the Gothamist 11 July 2007
  15. ^ "S Facts - YouTube". YouTube.
  16. ^ "The Darfur Wall Introduces Advocates Program". Retrieved 18 September 2014.
  17. ^ Advocate Profile on darfurwall.org Archived 12 October 2008 at the Wayback Machine
  18. ^ Sandoval, Greg "Top YouTube videographers descend on San Francisco" cnet.com, 17 February 2007
  19. ^ Swanwick, Tristan "Local talent goes global" Archived 8 January 2008 at the Wayback Machine The Courier Mail, 28 July 2007
  20. ^ Woerner, Meredith Plan 9 remake is cast io9, 29 September 2008
  21. ^ Seccombe, Andy (9 December 2008). "Caitlin Hill: Web star Wins Medal of Honor". New York Press. Archived from the original on 14 December 2008. Retrieved 11 December 2008.
  22. ^ "ROCKETBOOM INTERNATIONAL TALENT SEARCH". 3 June 2009. Archived from the original on 21 August 2009. Retrieved 8 June 2009.
  23. ^ Marc Hustvedt (6 July 2009). "'Rocketboom' Premieres New NYC Host 'mememolly'". Tubefilter. Archived from the original on 11 November 2009. Retrieved 29 November 2009.
  24. ^ "Caitlin » Dance Masala". Dance Masala. Archived from the original on 18 March 2016. Retrieved 18 September 2014.
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