This thesis provides a cultural study of Chinese animation with the case of 100,000 Bad Jokes within the context of China’s cultural system reforms and the development of the cultural and creative industries. This thesis provides a detailed contextual account of contemporary development in the Chinese animation industry, and describes and analyses its relation to convergence culture (Jenkins, 2006), specifically with regard to the animation 100,000 Bad Jokes. This thesis argues that intertextuality constitutes a salient characteristic of 100,000 Bad Jokes, and makes a significant contribution to its popularity. This intertextuality is supported and characterized by two other elements: play and nostalgia. Accordingly this thesis will provide account of the relation between intertextuality, play and nostalgia and developments in contemporary Chinese cultural and media policy, particularly in terms of censorship and the notion of “soft power”.