Dumb Ways to Die

 In Blog

A wonderful text has appeared from Melbourne in the form of a PSA  whose intent is to warn people—and especially teens—to be careful around trains.

The PSA presents a series of different deaths, accompanied by a simple pop tune and lyric describing each method of dying. The melody is a true earworm. It is the extensions that are most interesting.

dumbOpenDoor

There is a wonderful tension between the macabre subject of the PSA and the innocence of the lyrics and melody. The deaths occur to cartoon characters shaped somewhat like jellybeans, which distances the gruesomeness of the subject but adds to the irony. The soft music and lyric might appeal more to the target teens than a stern voice-over and photos of the aftermath of train accidents.

Todd Sampson, CEO of Leo Burnett Australia, believes that the power in the message in Dumb Ways to Die lies neither in the innocence of the lyric nor the earworm melody, but in the word ‘dumb.’ Teens may often believe that they are invincible, but they never want to be seen as dumb.

As well as the PSA, interactive elements that are included in the campaign include a karaoke version and .gif images that people can paste into their own messages.

There is also an iPad/iPhone game.

There are remixes too: Dumb ways to Die in Minecraft and an Annoying Orange version.

Each of these increases the chances of people paying more attention to the message and taking greater care around trains.

Is it enough to ‘be safe around trains?’ Could this message be expanded to other risky behaviours?

Very clever.

 

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