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videos clocking up a total of 33 million views on YouTube last year. The animations cover familiar topics like the high school prom or the first day of school but also explore serious issues like online bullying and drink driving. For Alexis, who runs the AGsmiless channel, the videos are a potential route into a career in film making. For others the pastime is less career-oriented, but no less obsessive. As photographer Ilona Szwarc's portraits show (http://www.ilonaszwarc.com/american-girls), the dolls are often customised to look like their owners, and many of the girls continue making animations well into adulthood. Watch some of the AGSM channels featured in our video: AGsmiless - https://www.youtube.com/user/AGsmiless Basilmentos - https://www.youtube.com/user/basilmentos AGPals - https://www.youtube.com/user/Agpals AGMagical13 - https://www.youtube.com/user/AGmagical13 HeartAG - https://www.youtube.com/user/HeartAG FiveDollStars - https://www.youtube.com/user/FiveDollStars SuperAG101- https://www.youtube.com/user/SuperAG101 InfinityAGstudios - https://www.youtube.com/user/mockingjay123000 Ilovesabie - https://www.youtube.com/user/ilovesabie Starryeyeschick - https://www.youtube.com/user/starryeyeschick 4everloveAG - https://www.youtube.com/user/4everloveag SUBSCRIBE to BBC Trending: http://bit.ly/SubBBCTrending Like what you see? Follow us here: BBC Trending blog: http://www.bbc.com/trending Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/bbctrending Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/BBC-Trending/832942320102956