2x6 matrix help needed...

Hello everyone,

I am new to this. I have 12 leds arranged in a 2x6 matrix. I currently use 8 pins on my board. I can light them all one by one, but I can't turn on two of them together because the respective two of the second row will turn on as well. Which is the best way to have them all act independently? Do I need extra hardware or is it only a matter of coding? I have been reading about bit shifting, shift registers, demultiplexers, I am so confused...
Any help would be really appreciated..

Easy way - use 2 shift registers.