Representatives from Beijing, China’s capital, and Sofia, Bulgaria’s capital, signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to enhance exchange and cooperation between the two cities in all fields of cultural creative industries. The MOU is expected to radiate the cultural collaboration between Beijing and other Central and Eastern European (CEE) countries.

Zhou Maofei, executive director general of Beijing’s State-owned Cultural Assets Supervision and Administration Office (SOCASAO), signed the MOU with Todor Chobanov, vice mayor of Sofia, during his trip there on July 12.

According to the memorandum, both cities will provide ease for each other to participate in important cultural creative activities, enhance personnel exchanges, visits and training, and encourage and assist cultural enterprises of the two cities to establish friendly relations and push forward project cooperation.

Zhou Maofei (right), executive director general of Beijing’s State-owned Cultural Assets Supervision and Administration Office (SOCASAO), signs the MOU with Todor Chobanov, vice mayor of Sofia, on July 12.

The delegation from Beijing visited Boyana Film Studios for film-making opportunities in the film, television copyright trade. Two industrial projects, China (Huairou) Film and TV Industry Zone and Movie Makers Space, were promoted for industrial cooperation with Sofia.

As an important part of China and the CEE “16+1” cooperation, which involves China and the 16 CEE countries, Bulgaria ranks the fifth among all the 16 countries on total mutual investment with China. The rapid development of Sofia’s cultural creative industry is expected to assist Beijing (Chinese) culture entering into the CEE countries and the region.

The SOCASAO also plans to establish normalized mechanism of cultural cooperation between Beijing and the overseas cities with beneficial policies, personnel exchanges and trade platforms speeding up its cultural creative industries’ pace to go global.

Zhou and his group also exchanged views with Sofia Development Association and Bulgarian-Chinese Chamber of Commerce and Industry (BCCCI) on Beijing’s cultural creative industries and enterprises.