Flixel for iPhone makes your photos dance, move and come alive

Flixel is really, really fun. That’s what it comes down to. What Instagram is for static photos+filters, Flixel is for living photos.

Now, there’s a fine line between video, animated GIFs and static photos, and Flixel manages to tow it pretty well. At its core, the app lets you take a series of photos and animate them. The beauty comes from being able to define where in the series you want the movement to be. One of my favourite examples is this one, of a moving subway train where everything else around it is static. It is stunning in its simplicity and its emotional power.

By “painting” the photo series in certain ways, your live photos take on a personality of their own. You can loop them forward or backwards, apply pre-defined aesthetic filters (think B&W, Lomo, Pro, etc.), and even insert delays for added effect.

The app is deep, with lots of opportunity for unique customizations, but it emphasizes simplicity. Designed by Toronto-based dev house endloop, creators of fantastic iOS apps iMockups for iPad and Arcade Solitaire 2, the team is familiar with the iOS design philosophy of making complicated apps appear simple.

Like Instagram, you can share your Flixels with friends via email, Facebook or Twitter, as well as follow your favourite amateur Flixographers inside the app. Endloop says that an Android version is in the works, but wouldn’t comment on a release date.

Check out Flixel in the App Store, and hit the break for a very cool demo video.