Bradford City of Film Director honoured by Beijing Film Academy
The Director of Bradford UNESCO City of Film has been appointed Guest Professor by the Beijing Film Academy in recognition for his work in promoting collaboration between UK and China film. David Wilson has been working with China over the past six years to develop collaborations in the area of film and TV production. Mr Wilson supported the city of Qingdao in China in their successful application to join the UNESCO Creative Cities Network as China’s first UNESCO designated City of Film. In September 2017 Bradford became the first European city to open a film office in Qingdao and it continues to encourage and develop co-production opportunities with China.
As a result of the growing relationship between the two cities Qingdao University of Science and Technology and the University of Bradford are developing a number of collaborations in the areas of science and technology as well as film and TV production.
Bradford City of Film hosted the Secretary-General of the China Film Association along with a delegation of Chinese film producers and directors to events in London and Bradford in 2018 and a delegation from Bradford attended the Golden Rooster Film Festival in November, China’s largest film gala.
Mr Wilson has now been asked to contribute to China’s Blue Book of Film, an annual report on the development of the global film industry as chair of the international editing committee for the 2019 edition of the publication.
Mr Wilson will visit the Beijing Film Academy – Modern Creative Media College in Qingdao on 23 May 2019 to take a tour of the facilities and deliver a lecture to students on his work with UNESCO and the work of the Bradford Film Office and how this links with the wider UK film and TV sectors and will be appointed as Guest Professor.
Professor Lu Bin of the Beijing Film Academy and Editor in Chief of the China Blue Book of Film said; ‘I met with Mr Wilson in London recently but already knew a lot about Bradford and the cooperation and support given to Qingdao to become a UNESCO City of Film. We are very pleased to have Mr Wilson as part of the editing team for the China Blue Book of Film and look forward to welcoming him to the Beijing Film Academy – Modern Creative Media College in Qingdao to speak with our students and also discuss future collaboration with Bradford.’
James Bridge, Secretary General and Chief Executive to the UK Commission for UNESCO said: “Bradford’s work as a UNESCO Creative City of Film has an impact not only for the sustainable development of Bradford as a UK City but also contributes toward the development of the global conversation on the wider use of culture in this area. The film heritage of Bradford and Qingdao creates ideal conditions for further cooperation in skills development to support film and TV in UK and China and looks to future collaboration as part of the co-production treaty. The cooperation also brings wider benefits such as film education and tourism.”
Professor Martin Priest, Dean of the Faculty of Engineering and Informatics, University of Bradford said; “Hosting the Bradford UNESCO City of Film and Bradford Film Office on campus has brought the film and TV production sector and skills development closer together, quite literally. We’ve had a number of large-scale productions using University facilities in recent years and we continue to see developing opportunities for people wanting to study film and TV here in the world’s first UNESCO City of Film. David is currently Honorary Fellow in Film here at Bradford and I think it is a huge credit to his determination to extend international collaboration in this area that the Beijing Film Academy will appoint him as Guest Professor.”
The UK Government signed a film co production treaty with China in April 2014 and co production treaty for TV in 2016. Both encourage more collaboration between UK and China.
