A TV competition shows Chinese fashion designers are as creative as their Western peers and equally willing to push the boundaries. Kelly Chung Dawson reports.

While most fashion experts will acknowledge China's potential as a luxury market, very few native Chinese fashion companies and designers have themselves actually succeeded on the international stage. But a hugely popular Chinese televised fashion design competition called Creative Sky, now entering its third season, seems to signal a growing belief that China may yet pride itself for its creative prowess.

Similar to the American hit series Project Runway, the show pits designers against each other in timed battles that demonstrate skill under pressure over the course of several stressful months. The prize is a full scholarship to the school of fashion at Parsons The New School for Design, widely regarded as having one of the best fashion programs in the world. Around 10 million viewers tuned in to watch the second season finale, according to Creative Sky producer Zou Yitian.

"The success of the show in China is a reflection of the current thirst for insight and knowledge about anything related to creativity," Zou says in an interview with China Daily. "Creativity, as applied to an industry, is a relatively new concept in China, and this is what the show is all about, hence the interest it is receiving."

First-season winner Zhao "Wen" Qianyan, 29, is now studying for a Master of Arts in Women's Wear at Parsons. In person, he is tall and mostly serious. With his structured bowl cut and avant-garde style, he seems at home in New York.

"I feel so lucky," Zhao says at his school's studio. He credits his family for his success. "My parents have always given me great freedom, which is very different from most Chinese families. As a result, even though my mother doesn't push me hard, I do it all for her."

In fact, it was at the urging of his mother that Zhao applied to the competition while receiving his Bachelor of Fine Arts degree at Central Saint Martins College of Art & Design, the highly prestigious London fashion school. He was initially skeptical about the television show, he says, because so many Chinese fashion competitions seem almost predetermined. But a competitive cast and world-esteemed judges, including Chinese-American fashion designer Derek Lam and Simon Collins, dean of the school of fashion at Parsons, soon made it clear that Creative Sky was a serious competition, he says.