Hojatollah Ayoubi (fifth left, second row), head of Iran's Cinematic Organization, with Shi Yongxin (sixth left, second row), the abbot of Shaolin Temple, and monks and others during a trip to the temple in Henan province. [Photo provided to China Daily]

The past decades have seen numerous foreign movies featuring kung fu, and now the martial art will connect China and Iran on the big screen.

Way to Shaolin is the first joint film production of the two countries.

When Chinese producer Shen Jian paid a visit to Iran last year, he was surprised by the locals' enthusiasm for Chinese martial arts.

Many young Iranians spoke of Jet Li, the Chinese kung fu star, and his 1982 film The Shaolin Temple, which captivated a generation of Chinese and ushered in a golden era for martial arts genre in the mainland.

"But it was kind of sad that most Iranians have very few opportunities to see Chinese martial arts movies on the big screen," says Shen. "We believe they (martial arts films) have a big market in Iran."

Iran has film censorship rules that guide domestic titles and foreign movies.

So, most Iranian movie enthusiasts see Jet Li and his martial arts movies using video discs.

Despite its lack of access to global films, Iranian cinema has made its mark in the world at least since the 1990s.