Creativity, culture tourism and place-making: Istanbul and London film industries

Purpose ‐ The paper aims to examine the role of creative industries in general and the film industry in particular for place-making, spatial development, tourism, and the formation of creative cities. Design/methodology/approach ‐ The article reveals the preliminary findings of two case studies from Beyoglu, Istanbul, and Soho, London. Findings ‐ The research found a relation between place and creativity and the positive contribution to creativity of being in a city center. Among the creative industries, the film industry plays an important role in the economic and spatial development of cities by fostering endogenous creativeness, attracting exogenous talent, and contributing to the formation of places that creative cities require. Originality/value ‐ The paper raises interesting questions about the importance of place to creativity, also questioning whether creative industries can be a driver for regeneration.