In this article, I will adopt the term donghua in order to explore the historiographic trajectory in which Chinese animated films have been engaging, along with the socio-cultural transformation of Chinese modern society in the postwar era, and accompanied by the formation of a national identity within refashioned visual cultures and critiques. By revealing the struggle for the creativity and diversity of guohua, nianhua, and donghua, I aim to map out such invented visual traditions and the related socio-cultural significances in postwar China.