Art can't shine when box office gold lines the silver screens

The Avengers has raked in more than 300 million yuan on Chinese mainland.

What The Avengers offers comprises the reasons Seediq Bale could hardly perform well in Chinese theaters, the overwhelming majority of which are commercial cinemas.

The long film has no star and a difficult title to understand, while its story of a small Taiwan aboriginal tribe is difficult for mainland audiences to relate to.

No matter how avidly insiders and critics call for theaters and audiences to give it a second chance, the decision making power is in the purse of those who buy tickets.

When tickets cost 50 yuan, and often 100 yuan for 3D films, an ordinary urban Chinese viewer earning about 5,000 yuan a month usually pays only two or three visits to cinemas a month.

China imports 20 foreign films to theaters a year - mostly such Hollywood blockbusters as Avatar and Transformers. It's quite reasonable to expect viewers to spend their money on titles they have a clear understanding of , and studios that disappoint them much less frequently.

Seediq Bale has achieved artistic refinement.

By revealing a little-known period of history, it raises questions about important issues, such as civilization and savagery, and freedom and slavery. Although some critics may have gone a bit too far in calling it China's Braveheart, it deserves respect.

But it's simply not the typical flick commercial theaters would pick.

Actually, the fact that Seediq Bale and The Avengers compete in the same kind of theaters is a big problem.

Art films are often edgy, avant-garde and critical, which means they could be neglected, misunderstood and even avoided by mass audiences.

But, in the long term, they inspire people to look at the world and themselves in different ways. They may not make money, but making money - from the beginning - is not their main purpose or the criterion that determines their value.

Entertaining blockbusters are made for the market. And the market will decide their fate.

But quality art films need more government assistance, because their creation is never purely business.