More than 50 million people around the globe have seen the ‘Dumb Ways to Die’ video ad created by Melbourne Metro Trains as part of its corporate social responsibility program, and advertising firm McCann.

Aimed at making young people more careful around trains, the ad swept the board at the prestigious annual Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity. It won five Grand Prix awards, 18 Gold Lions, three Silver Lions and two Bronze Lions, making it the single most awarded advertising campaign for the festival ever.

Australia had a record breaking week at the 2013 festival, despite being one of the smallest competitors in terms of entry numbers. Thirteen Australian-made films and ads made the Cannes Lions finals.

The original ‘Dumb Ways to Die’ video was posted on YouTube in November 2012, had more than 20 million views within a week and is currently running at over 50 million views. The campaign built from there, and now includes a smartphone game that can be downloaded from the Apple Store.

"The idea stemmed from our staff seeing people doing risky or dumb things around trains," said Leah Waymark, General Manager Corporate Relations at Metro Melbourne.