Tourism and the Branded City: Film and Identity on the Pacific Rim

Donald and Gammack have managed to breathe life into the often perfunctory exercise of comparative cultural geography with their vibrant stories of three great cities of the West Pacific Rim. Reading this interdisciplinary smorgasbord will whet your appetite for engaging in depth with the fresh and fascinating matter of branding cities.'Professor Stuart Cunningham, Director ARC Centre of Excellence for Creative Industries and Innovation, Queensland University of Technology, AustraliaA welcome contribution to the growing literature on the inter-relationships between cinema and the city. Through a focus on city branding in Hong Kong, Shanghai, and Sydney this book helps our understanding as to why more and more of the world's cities appear to have stepped right out of the movies Dr Richard G. Smith, University of Swansea, UKComparing Sydney, Hong Kong and Shanghai, this book examines world city branding. Whilst all three cities compete on the world's stage for events, tourists and investment, they are also at the centre of distinct film traditions and their identities are thus strongly connected with a cinematic impression. Using an interdisciplinary approach, this book not only analyses the city branding of these cities from the more widely researched perspectives of tourism, marketing and regional development, but also brings in cultural studies and psychology approaches which offer fresh and useful insights to place branding and marketing in general. Comparing the major Pacific Rim cities of Sydney, Hong Kong and Shanghai, this book examines world city branding. Whilst all three cities compete on the world's stage for events, tourists and investment, they are also at the centre of distinct film traditions and their identities are thus strongly connected with a cinematic impression.Using an interdisciplinary approach, this book not only analyses the city branding of these cities from the more widely researched perspectives of tourism, marketing and regional development, but also brings in cultural studies and psychology approaches which offer fresh and useful insights to place branding and marketing in general. The authors compare and contrast qualitative and quantitative original data as well as critically analysing current texts and debates on city branding. In conclusion, they argue that city branding should contribute not only to regional development and identity, but also to sustainable economic well-being and public happiness, highlighting qualities such as a location's natural and artificial features, history and future, uniqueness and universality, culture and people, sensory qualities and sustainable reputation.Contents: Introduction: an argument for the cinematic city; A discussion of method; Branding the city; Structures of attention and the 'city of life' (Hong Kong); Flatlands revisited (Sydney); Shanghai: world city?; The future of city branding; References; Filmography; Index.About the Author: Dr Stephanie Hemelryk Donald is director of the Instate for International Studies, University of Technology, Sydney, Australia. Dr John Gammack is Lecturer at Griffith Business School, Griffith University, Queensland, Australia.