Bradford City of Film features in a special exhibition in Beijing running as part of China’s first UNESCO Creative Cities summit.

Beijing joined the Creative Cities Network last year as a City of Design and has invited all other Creative Cities members to discuss how culture and creativity can be used to make cities more sustainable.

The four-day summit, called Charming Creativity, Beautiful City, is the first large international event co-hosted by Beijing and UNESCO. It brings together representatives of UNESCO-designated Creative Cities from around the world, as well as artists, designers and cultural leaders, to discuss experiences of developing cities through innovative, creative projects.

David Wilson, director of Bradford City of Film team, is at the summit, at the invitation of the Mayor of Beijing, and has given several presentations on the work being done here in the district.

“There is lots of interest in our National Media Museum and the film literacy work we are doing in Bradford schools,” said Mr Wilson.

“Bradford City of Film features in an exhibition at the new Beijing Capital Museum. We are definitely putting Bradford on a world stage here with our City of Film designation.”

Mr Wilson has met Yang Yongan, director of the China National Film Museum – the largest film museum in the world – and members of the Beijing Film Academy.

“China has a fast-growing film market and I want to try to forge closer links with Bradford City of Film and with our university and new international film school at Bradford College,” said Mr Wilson.

“More than half the world’s population now live in cities, and that figure will rise to 70 per cent in the next few years. Beijing, along with other cities around the world, would like to work more closely together alongside UNESCO to ensure the sustainability of cities for the future, using culture and creativity as a key driver.”

The Creative Cities Network was established by the UNESCO in 2004, aimed at offering global cities a platform to share experiences and form partnerships.

The Creative Cities represent film, literature, music, crafts and folk art, design, media arts and gastronomy.