Dumb Ways to Die (from English - “stupid ways to die”) - social advertising , and then the game, presented by the operator Metro trains, managing railway networks in the Australian city of Melbourne . The advertising campaign is aimed at promoting safe transport behavior, viral content is placed in the public domain and social media . In the advertisement, 20 characters sing about their deaths from beginning to end. In each chorus the very name "Dumb ways to die" is sung. The song was uploaded on YouTube in 2012.
Content
Campaign
The campaign was developed by the McCann advertising agency from Melbourne. In the city was placed outdoor advertising. Advertisements also appeared in newspapers, on city radio, throughout the metro, and in the Tumblr microblogging service [1] . John Meskoll, executive director of McCann's creative service, said: “The goal of this campaign is to attract the attention of an audience that does not want to hear any messages about safety rules, and we think that Dumb Ways To Die will be an exception for them” [1] . Campaign initiators expected that in two weeks its value would reach 50 million Australian dollars, plus about 700 reproductions in the media.
Video
The video was invented by Pat Baron, animator was made by Julian Frost, and his producer was Kinnamon Darwell [1] . On November 14, 2012, the video was uploaded to YouTube , two days later it was opened to public access. Video in the genre of " black humor " demonstrates "various cute characters who kill themselves in incredibly idiotic ways" [2] . The last three characters die as a result of non-compliance with safety rules on the railway. During the development of events, the characters sing an amusing song about their deadly adventures, after “death” joining the chorus of their predecessors. A total of 20 characters in the video, each with its own "idiotic way to die."
The video gathered 2.7 million views in 48 hours [3] and 4.7 million in 72 hours [2] . For two weeks, the video was viewed 28 million times and parked 85 times [4] . On November 26, McCann published the official karaoke version of the song [5] .
Song
The song "Dumb Ways to Die", sounding in the video, was written and produced by Olli McGill from the group The Cat Empire , the author of the text was John Meskoll himself from McCann [6] . She performed the composition of Emily Lubitz from Tinpan Orange , backing vocals by Olli McGill [3] [2] . The song appeared on iTunes , where it was attributed to the fictional artist “Tangerine Kitty” (a reference to Tinpan Orange and The Cat Empire ).
For 24 hours, the song hit the Top-10 iTunes Chart, and by November 18 it ranked sixth in the list of the most popular tracks [3], overtaking Rihanna’s song “ Diamonds ” [7] . The song was called "the greatest Australian viral hit" [6] . She also hit the Top-10 iTunes charts in Hong Kong [8] , Singapore [9] , Taiwan [10], and Vietnam [11] . In two weeks, 65 cover versions have been uploaded to YouTube [4] .
Game
On May 7, 2013, an ad-dedicated game "Dumb Ways to die Original" for the iPhone [12] [13] appeared , offering to expose the characters of the advertisement to various dangers [14] . In September, a version of the game for Android was released [15] . On November 9, 2016, the game was completely completed, but then they began to create new levels with old characters. And in 2014, part 2 of the game was created - "Dumb Ways to Die 2: The Games".
Feedback
Simon Crerar of the Herald Sun writes that the refrain of this song is “the most catchy since PSY’s Gangnam Style [2] . Alice Clark, in the pages of the same publication, calls the video “delightfully painful,” in her opinion, the public transport of the British Commonwealth has finally “broken a long strip of terrible campaigns” [16] .
Daisy Dewmas from the Sydney Morning Herald called the song “emotionally dark and tiringly exciting”, and the refrain “instant sticky for ears” [17] .
CNET 's Michel Starr describes the ad campaign as “a mixture of the Darwin Prize and The Gashlycrumb Tinies ", And the song as" a nice little indie-pop hit in the spirit of Feist " [18] .
Logan Booker of Gizmodo saw in the clip "a page from Happy Tree Friends , where the terrible is mixed with the charming" [19] .
Karen Stokes of YouTube Australia sees a remarkable advertising campaign in a large number of mobile video views [20] . Stokes attributes the success of the video to a lively title, a catchy melody that instantly gets stuck in the head, as well as an easy-to-understand message addressed to an exactly chosen target audience [20] . The Sunshine Coast Daily reports a “gangnam style-style train safety campaign” [21] .
Arlene Paredes of the International Business Times believes that the video was “brilliant in terms of attracting the attention of viewers” and “this is probably one of the most charming social advertising campaigns in history” [22] .
In May 2013, the advertising campaign won seven Webby Awards , including awards for the best animated film and the best social advertising [23] .
On June 17, 2013, the Dumb Ways to Die advertising campaign won top awards in the PR, Direct and Promo & Activation categories at the Cannes Lions International Advertising Festival [24] .
Censorship in Russia
Access to a blog post by the famous Russian web designer Artemy Lebedev on the livejournal.com platform containing the video “Dumb ways to die” was blocked upon request from Roskomnadzor , the authority implementing Internet censorship in Russia [25] . On the same day, videos on Youtube ceased to be available to viewers from Russia, instead a standard message about access denial due to claims of the copyright holder is shown. Later this wording was replaced by the following [26] :
This content is blocked in your country at the request of government agencies.
Lebedev in his blog quotes a letter demanding to block his post, sent to the administration Livejournal.com :
The text of the song contains a description of various methods of suicide, for example: use medicines that have expired, stand on the edge of the platform, run through the rails between the platforms, eat a superglue tube and others. Cartoon characters demonstrate the described methods of suicide in a humorous format that is attractive to children and adolescents. Such lines of the song as “Hide in the clothes dryer”, “I wonder what this red button does?” Contain a call for action, singing their “Funny, but dumb song Dumb ways to die”.
The blocking of the post was carried out in accordance with the “ Black Lists ” Law adopted in November 2012, according to which the publication of materials related to the promotion of drug use, child pornography and suicide is prohibited [27] .
See also
- Darwin Award
- Happy Tree Friends
Notes
- 2 1 2 3 McCann's dumb ways to die , Australian Creative (19 November 2012). Archived November 19, 2012.
- 2 1 2 3 4 Cute Melbourne safety video becomes Heath Sun (19 November 2012).
- ↑ 1 2 3 Error in footnotes ? : Invalid
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- ↑ 1 2 Aussie viral video, 'Dumb Ways to Die', lives on , The Age (November 29, 2012). The appeal date is June 29, 2016.
- ↑ Dumb Ways to Die spawns karaoke spin off , Mumbrella (November 27, 2012). The appeal date is June 29, 2016.
- 2 1 2 'Dumb ways to die' goes viral , 3AW (19 November 2012). Archived October 29, 2013.
- & McCann's B & T Marketing & Media (10 November 2012). Archived November 29, 2012.
- ↑ Hong Kong iTunes Top 20 Songs (November 21, 2012). Archived November 21, 2012.
- ↑ Singapore iTunes Top 20 Songs (November 21, 2012). Archived November 21, 2012.
- ↑ Taiwan iTunes Top 20 Songs (November 21, 2012). Archived November 21, 2012.
- ↑ Vietnam iTunes Top 20 Songs (November 21, 2012). Archived November 21, 2012.
- ↑ Dumb Ways to Die . Apple App Store . The appeal date is May 27, 2013.
- ↑ Dodge Piranhas and Swat Wasps in new 'Dumb Ways to Die' Game . Creativity Online . The appeal date is May 27, 2013.
- ↑ Dumb Ways to Die: Hilariously . App Chronicles . The appeal date is May 27, 2013. Archived June 7, 2013.
- ↑ Dumb Ways to Die . Google Play Store . The appeal date is September 18, 2013.
- We How we've cornered the market in terrible advertising , Herald Sun (November 26, 2012).
- ↑ Being dumb with the Sydney Morning Herald (19 November 2012).
- ↑ Metro Trains PSA details dumb ways to die , CNET (19 November 2012).
- Yet, Yet Yet rif Video Yet Yet Yet Met Met Met YouTube YouTube YouTube YouTube YouTube YouTube YouTube YouTube YouTube YouTube YouTube YouTube YouTube YouTube YouTube YouTube YouTube YouTube YouTube YouTube YouTube YouTube YouTube YouTube YouTube YouTube YouTube YouTube Adam
- 2 1 2 Mobile devices help to change the Australian viral brand video of all time , mUmBRELLA (19 November 2012).
- Ways Gangam Style of train safety , the Sunshine Coast Daily (20 November 2012).
- ↑ Viral Video with 8M Views: Melbourne Metro Ad - Cute, Twisted, Brilliant , International Business Times (20 November 2012). Archived January 25, 2013.
- ↑ Melbourne railroad safety wins Webby , The Age (May 1, 2013).
- ↑ Prohibited in Russia video received two Grand Prix "Cannes Lions" . Lenta.ru (June 18, 2013). The appeal date is June 18, 2013. Archived June 18, 2013.
- ↑ A post on Lebedev’s blog was blocked for a video about blunt suicide methods , Lenta.ru (5 February, 2013).
- ↑ Blocked Dumb Ways to Die Movie on YouTube
- ↑ The number of “victims” of the registry of banned sites increased by one third in a week , Lenta.ru (25 December 2012).
Links
- Official campaign website
- Dumb Ways to Die YouTube Videos
- Dumb Ways to Die - Official Karaoke Edition video on YouTube
- Mccann