Chinese regulators allow only 34 foreign films to be shown in theaters each year, severely limiting access to the latest Hollywood blockbusters.
Approved films still face the heavy hand of government censors, who cut anything the Communist Party considers offensive or subversive.
Chinese audiences love the slimmed-down foreign films, and Hollywood is eager for regulators to expand their quota.
Despite the commercial advantage it gives them, Chinese filmmakers are likely to continue to bump heads with Beijing over censorship. China heaped praise on Taiwan-born director Ang Lee when he won the Academy Award for Best Director in 2005. His film, Brokeback Mountain, was never shown in China.
