An
art film (also called an “art cinema”, “art movie”, or in the US, an "
independent film" or “art house film”) is a typically serious, noncommercial, independently made
film that is aimed at a
niche audience, rather than a
mass audience. Film critics and film studies scholars typically define an “art film” using a “...canon of films and those formal qualities that mark them as different from mainstream Hollywood films.” Art film producers usually present their films at specialty theatres (repertory cinemas, or in the US "arthouse cinemas") and
film festivals. The term "art film" is much more widely used in the
United States than in Europe, where the term "art film" is more associated with
"auteur" films and "
national cinema" (e.g., German national cinema).
See more at Wikipedia.org...
FILM D'ESSAI. FILM SULL'ARTE