BBC Radio 1Xtra’s A.Dot launches Mixital animation tool
BBC Radio 1Xtra’s A.Dot today launches the Trashbag Tuesday animation tool with Mixital to inspire teenagers to get creative with what Brits do best – complain about the things that annoy them most.
Published: 17 January 2017
This is a really innovative project and it will inspire young people to get creative. The best part is that it was designed and built with the help of the BBC Mixital youth panel - this is a great example of the BBC helping young people to develop their digital skills.
A.Dot launches the brand new tool as part of her regular Trashbag Tuesday feature. Her Breakfast show, which takes place weekdays 7-10am, covers a range of topics including the latest music releases, news, interviews and announcements. On Tuesdays, A.Dot presents Trashbag in which she invites fans to vent about the things that annoy them.
From today, fans can illustrate their frustrations by creating and publishing animations on to the BBC’s new creativity website Mixital and then share them with friends on social media. A.Dot will showcase the best submissions on her show.
The animation tool requires no technical skills to use. Users can quickly create a wide variety of dramatic stories using characters like BBC 1Xtra DJ Charlie Sloth, a waste collector, an old man, a teacher and, of course, A.Dot herself. There are also, numerous locations for the stories including an underground station, a classroom and the streets of London.
A.Dot sees the innovation as a way of engaging in new ways with her fans as well as promoting new talent. The kit was designed, built and launched by the Mixital Youth Panel – a group of young creatives, coders and designers helping to shape the Mixital website.
A.Dot says: “It's really exciting to launch the Trashbag Tuesday animation maker on my show. This is a really innovative project and it will inspire young people to get creative. The best part is that it was designed and built with the help of the BBC Mixital youth panel - this is a great example of the BBC helping young people to develop their digital skills.”
Mixital is a new digital platform for teenagers to get creative with some of the BBC’s best-known brands and programmes like EastEnders, BBC Three and Strictly. It’s part of the BBC’s mission to boost the digital skills of young people. It’s designed to be a safe, fun space to experiment, build confidence and showcase work publicly. All are essential ingredients of creativity.
The Mixital Youth Panel was established in March 2016 to put young people at the heart of the BBC’s new offer to youngsters and even give them the opportunity to build their own digital products.
Martin Wilson, Head of Digital Creativity, BBC Design and Engineering, says: “We’ve seen the appetite of BBC audiences to get creative digitally with our best-loved brands. The Mixital Youth Panel now takes this a step further by actually building a digital tool to help others get creative. It’s a digital product built by young people for young people.”
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