When Bradford became the world’s first UNESCO City of Film in 2009, there were snorts of derision from those who pointed out that we weren’t exactly the obvious choice.

It was a different story when Sydney was granted City of Film status last December. With the cream of Australian cinema, including Cate Blanchett, Nicole Kidman, Hugh Jackman and Baz Luhrmann, behind the bid, and a rich film-making history – movies such as Star Wars and the Matrix trilogy were shot there – the title sealed Sydney’s reputation as a major creative hub.

Even so, although it’s no underdog, Sydney may not have been the obvious choice down under.

“In Australia, there’s this idea that Melbourne is the cultural city – it’s UNESCO City of Literature – whereas in Sydney, it’s all about the sunshine and beaches,” says Abigail Thomas, manager of Sydney’s City of Film bid. “It’s a very creative city, but that hasn’t been articulated so much, so we’re proud to have this platform to shout about our cultural life and build on our film successes.

“People in Sydney feel passionate about their city, and when preparing the bid we had their morale in mind.

“The UNESCO stamp gives the title kudos on a world scale. It recognises Sydney’s cultural achievements and sets the way for our future.”

Now links are being forged between Bradford and Sydney – and future opportunities could include exchange visits between schools and colleges.

The two cities recently linked up through young film-makers network Cineclub, of which 19 Bradford schools are members.

A branch is being set up in Sydney by Cineclub director Karl Wozny, who is working with Abigail on a film project involving schools from both Bradford and Sydney. Films made here and the other side of the world will be shared in cinemas and on websites.

“Education was a strong element of our bid and is something we want to focus on,” says Abigail. “We have a lot of films made here and a lot of film festivals – but there’s a gap in film literacy.

“A major focus of City of Film is to develop talent and opportunities; to ‘breed’ the next generation of film-makers.

“It’s early days and we’re working through everything to form a concrete plan. Making links with Bradford is going to be an important part of it all. ”

Abigail, who is head of strategic development in innovation at ABC, Australia’s public broadcaster, is originally from London.

“When I was preparing the bid, I had a funny conversation with Bradford’s team – they said: ‘Why Sydney?’ That’s what’s great about this accolade; it highlights cities and leads to international exchanges and partnerships. And it brings coherence to a city where there may be many disparate projects,” she says.

One of the aims of the City of Film title is to boost the local economy through film-making. Abigail says that, while the recession hasn’t hit Australia’s film industry so much, it has become harder to attract projects on the scale of Star Wars.

“The local film industry is doing well, but the Australian dollar is very strong at the moment, so it’s hard to attract international film-makers,” she says.

Like Bradford, Sydney has a long history of film-making, with silent movies dating back to the late 19th century. And, like Yorkshire, it has diverse landscapes to attract film-makers.

“We have mountains, beaches and rainforests, as well as urban locations,” says Abigail. “A big advantage is our screen infrastructure, which includes digital movie production and the Fox Studios complex.” A major project under Sydney’s City of Film banner this year is the filming of Baz Luhrmann’s new 3D version of The Great Gatsby, starring Leonardo DiCaprio. Other movies made in Sydney include Moulin Rouge, Mad Max, Mission Impossible 2, Muriel’s Wedding, Superman Returns and outback epic Australia.

Animation also features strongly; Sydney has a studio for design, animation and visual effects company Animal Logic where the soon-to-be-released Happy Feet 2 was made.

Abigail said links could be forged between animation festivals in Sydney and Bradford. And with Sydney holding a film festival every month, including Tropfest, the world’s largest short film showcase, a similar programme exchange could be set up with Bradford International Film Festival.

While Sydney can boast a world-class film-making industry, it does covet one of the jewels in Bradford’s crown. “We would love a centre similar to the National Media Museum. That’s something we are planning for,” says Abigail.