How do you survive alone on an arid planet 225 million kilometers from Earth? The Martian provides the answers.[Photo provided to China Daily]

With food only for one month, he is forced to become a "Robinson Crusoe" and plant potatoes on Mars, which has no water, no oxygen and very low temperatures.

When an explosion destroys all the potatoes he planted and NASA fails to fly in fresh supplies, China steps in to help by allowing a booster rocket called Taiyangshen (God of the Sun) to carry the payload.

Chinese mainland actress Chen Shu and Hong Kong actor Eddy Ko star as leaders of the China National Space Administration, who make the decision to offer the lifeline.

Asked by China Daily if China's role in the movie reflects the country's rising international status, Scott did not give a direct reply but says that expensive space exploration needs international collaboration.

He says that the United States made an evaluation on the cost of a journey to the Mars in 1995. The figure which they came up with－around $1 trillion－makes him believe that all nations with the resources and budgets should cooperate to help human beings learn more about space.

Meanwhile, even Chinese sci-fi fans were keen on scientific details at film's promotional events in Beijing on Friday and Saturday.

Scott sidesteps the questions.