FlipaClip
{{Short description|2D animation software}}
{{Infobox software
| title = FlipaClip
| logo = Flipaclip-logo_5.png
| logo size = 250px
| developer = Visual Blasters LLC
| released = {{Start date and age|2012|04|02|df=yes}}{{Cite web |title=FlipaClip: Create 2D Animation |url=https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.vblast.flipaclip |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240207023425/https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.vblast.flipaclip |archive-date=February 7, 2024 |access-date=February 10, 2024 |website=Google Play}}
| operating system = Android, iOS, Windows, macOS, ChromeOS
| language count = 15
| licence = EULA{{Cite web |title=FlipaClip App Terms of Use |url=https://flipaclip.com/terms-of-use/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231223234459/https://flipaclip.com/terms-of-use/ |archive-date=December 23, 2023 |access-date=February 2, 2024 |website=flipaclip.com}}
| website = {{URL|https://flipaclip.com/}}
| latest release date = {{Start date and age|2022|03|15}}
}}
FlipaClip is a 2D animation software application. FlipaClip was mainly developed by the three Meson brothers of Miami-based company Visual Blasters. It was initially made available for Android in 2012 before being released for iOS, Windows, macOS and ChromeOS. FlipaClip has an online community of mainly young creators.
Features
{{multiple image|total_width = 250|image1=FlipaClip tablet screenshot.jpg|image2=FlipaClip mobile screenshot.jpg|footer=Basic layout on a horizontal tablet (left) and a vertical phone (right) with a blank project}}
FlipaClip allows users to create 2D frame-by-frame animations.{{Cite web |last=Tomoyose |first=Guillermo |date=December 6, 2019 |title=De Tucumán al mundo: FlipaClip, la app argentina destacada como una de las mejores del año por Apple |trans-title=From Tucumán to the world: FlipaClip, the Argentinian app featured as one of the best of the year by Apple |url=https://www.lanacion.com.ar/tecnologia/de-tucuman-al-mundo-flipaflip-app-argentina-nid2313030/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221005153957/https://www.lanacion.com.ar/tecnologia/de-tucuman-al-mundo-flipaflip-app-argentina-nid2313030/ |archive-date=October 5, 2022 |access-date=February 7, 2024 |website=La Nación |language=es}}{{Cite web |last=Dahlberg |first=Nancy |date=April 30, 2017 |title=You, too, can be an animator. Yes, there's an app for that. |url=https://www.miamiherald.com/news/business/technology/article147613109.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://archive.today/20240206220229/https://www.miamiherald.com/news/business/technology/article147613109.html |archive-date=February 6, 2024 |access-date=February 7, 2024 |website=Miami Herald}} Besides the basic drawing features, users can use a customizable rule tool; import images, videos and audio files; create multiple frame layers at various frames per second;{{Cite web |last=Beltran |first=Ana |title=FlipaClip: Cartoon Animation |url=https://www.commonsensemedia.org/app-reviews/flipaclip-cartoon-animation |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230420121350/https://www.commonsensemedia.org/app-reviews/flipaclip-cartoon-animation |archive-date=April 20, 2023 |access-date=February 2, 2024 |website=Common Sense Media}}{{multiref|{{Cite web |title=The Basics |url=https://support.flipaclip.com/hc/en-us/sections/5069849369367-The-Basics |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230925222330/https://support.flipaclip.com/hc/en-us/sections/5069849369367-The-Basics |archive-date=September 25, 2023 |access-date=February 2, 2024 |website=flipaclip.com}}|{{Cite web |title=Advanced Options |url=https://support.flipaclip.com/hc/en-us/sections/15939658568983-Advanced-Options |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230926002238/https://support.flipaclip.com/hc/en-us/sections/15939658568983-Advanced-Options |archive-date=September 26, 2023 |access-date=February 2, 2024 |website=flipaclip.com}}}} and export their work in various file formats.{{Cite web |title=Saving Animations as a Movie |url=https://support.flipaclip.com/hc/en-us/articles/360059178614-Saving-Animations-as-a-Movie |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230925230051/https://support.flipaclip.com/hc/en-us/articles/360059178614-Saving-Animations-as-a-Movie |archive-date=September 25, 2023 |access-date=February 2, 2024 |website=flipaclip.com}}
The software has a free and a paid subscription version (FlipaClip Plus) with more features.{{Cite web |title=FlipaClip Plus Explained |url=https://support.flipaclip.com/hc/en-us/articles/11671524303895-FlipaClip-Plus-Explained |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230925225638/https://support.flipaclip.com/hc/en-us/articles/11671524303895-FlipaClip-Plus-Explained |archive-date=September 25, 2023 |access-date=February 2, 2024 |website=flipaclip.com}}
History
FlipaClip was developed by Visual Blasters LLC, a Miami-based mobile app company founded in 2010 by Argentinian-born brothers Jonathan and Marcos Meson. The brothers have prior experience in software engineering, marketing, internet radio and motion graphics design.{{Cite web |last=Oropeza |first=Daniel |date=August 21, 2022 |title=Three Miami brothers built an animation app children are using to create digital images on phones, tablets |url=https://www.miamiherald.com/news/business/article263119153.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://archive.today/20240207123803/https://www.miamiherald.com/news/business/article263119153.html |archive-date=February 7, 2024 |access-date=February 7, 2024 |website=Miami Herald}} In 2012, their youngest brother Tim joined the company as a lead engineer.{{Cite web |last=Portero |first=Ashley |date=July 20, 2022 |title=How three brothers created an animation app with millions of users |url=https://www.bizjournals.com/southflorida/inno/stories/profiles/2022/07/20/flipaclip-animation-app-six-million-users.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://archive.today/20220921050454/https://www.bizjournals.com/southflorida/inno/stories/profiles/2022/07/20/flipaclip-animation-app-six-million-users.html |archive-date=September 21, 2022 |access-date=February 7, 2024 |website=Miami Inno |publisher=The Business Journals}}{{refn|group=n|By 2022, the Visual Blasters team had reached 16 employees.}}
The idea for FlipaClip was inspired by the Meson brothers' previous animation software creations and concepts going back to 2008, prior to the company's founding.{{Cite web |date=December 5, 2019 |title=Flipaclip App: tres argentinos fueron premiados por Apple |trans-title=Flipaclip App: three Argentines were awarded by Apple |url=https://www.lavoz.com.ar/tecnologia/flipaclip-app-tres-argentinos-fueron-premiados-por-apple/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210919112416/https://www.lavoz.com.ar/tecnologia/flipaclip-app-tres-argentinos-fueron-premiados-por-apple/ |archive-date=September 19, 2021 |access-date=February 15, 2024 |website=La Voz del Interior |language=es}} The project began in earnest in 2012 with a submission to a contest with a one-month deadline hosted by Samsung for stylus-based apps. Jonathan and Tim worked on technical aspects like coding, while Marcos dealt with the visual design.
While the brothers did not win the contest, the app launched on Android in April 2012 and was further developed thereafter. Visual Blasters made a deal with children's tablet computer company Fuhu in 2014, which resulted in FlipaClip being pre-installed in over 400,000 devices. In March 2017, the app was made available for iOS; it was also eventually released for Windows, macOS, ChromeOS and Huawei devices.{{multiref|{{Cite web |title=FlipaClip Availability |url=https://support.flipaclip.com/hc/en-us/articles/360059176834-FlipaClip-Availability |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240202192623/https://support.flipaclip.com/hc/en-us/articles/360059176834-FlipaClip-Availability |archive-date=February 2, 2024 |access-date=February 7, 2024 |website=flipaclip.com}}|{{Cite web |title=What operating systems (OS) does FlipaClip work on? |url=https://support.flipaclip.com/hc/en-us/articles/360059176834-What-operating-systems-OS-does-FlipaClip-work-on- |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210117025514/https://support.flipaclip.com/hc/en-us/articles/360059176834-What-operating-systems-OS-does-FlipaClip-work-on- |archive-date=January 17, 2021 |access-date=February 10, 2024 |website=flipaclip.com}}}}
In November 2024, 900 thousand users were exposed in a data breach due to an exposed Firebase server. The app's team stated that they subsequently solved the issue.{{Cite web |title=Pwned websites |url=https://haveibeenpwned.com/PwnedWebsites |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241204135624/https://haveibeenpwned.com/PwnedWebsites |archive-date=December 4, 2024 |access-date=December 4, 2024 |website=Have I Been Pwned}}
Community
In February 2017, the Android app attained 5.5 million downloads, and 550,000 users were reported to be monthly active. During the COVID-19 pandemic starting in 2020, the number of monthly active FlipaClip users doubled, which the Miami Herald partially attributed to its use by teachers.{{refn|group=n|The app's gross revenue during the pandemic's early stages saw a growth of over 100%.}} By 2022, FlipaClip had been downloaded 60 million times and reached 6 million monthly active users.
The app formed an active community of creators, many of which share their animations on social media platforms such as YouTube and TikTok. 70% of its users were reportedly under 18 by 2022, which, according to Miami Inno of The Business Journals, indicates traction among members of Generation Z. As part of one of the app's sponsored contests, "Beat COVID-19", 300,000 creators animated educational videos about the virus.
Reception
In her review for Common Sense Media, Ana Beltran rated the app 4 stars out of 5. She mentioned how the app's introductory tutorial encouraged new and experienced creators, and despite the "somewhat distracting" advertisements in the free version, the interface and navigation were nonetheless regarded as "inviting" and promoting creativity in children.
In 2019, Apple nominated FlipaClip for the App Trend of the Year distinction. FlipaClip was awarded "Best for Chromebooks" in Google Play's Best of 2023.{{Cite web |last=Porter |first=Jon |date=November 30, 2023 |title=And the awards for best Android apps go to... |url=https://www.theverge.com/2023/11/30/23982312/and-the-awards-for-best-android-apps-go-to |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231222042904/https://www.theverge.com/2023/11/30/23982312/and-the-awards-for-best-android-apps-go-to |archive-date=December 22, 2023 |access-date=February 15, 2024 |website=The Verge}}
Notes
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References
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External links
- [https://flipaclip.com/ Official website]
{{Animation editors}}
Category:2D animation software
Category:Cross-platform software
Category:MacOS graphics software
Category:Windows graphics-related software