to strict censorship and control of published media. Many animators were urged to produce animations that enforced the Japanese spirit and national affiliation. Some movies were shown in newsreel theatres, especially after the Film Law of 1939 promoted documentary and other educational films. Such support helped boost the industry, as bigger companies formed through mergers and prompted major live-action studios such as Shochiku to begin producing animation. It was at Shochiku that such masterworks as Kenzō Masaoka's Kumo to Chūrippu were produced. Wartime reorganization of the industry, however, merged the feature film studios into three big companies. During the Second World War, more animated films were commissioned by the Imperial Japanese Army, showing the sly, quick Japanese people winning against enemy forces. This included films such as Maysuyo Seo's Momotarō: Umi no Shinpei or Momotarō’s Divine Sea Warriors which focused on Japanese occupation of Asia. Postwar environment In the post-war years, Japanese media was often influenced by the United States, leading some to define anime as any animation emanating from Japan after 1945. While anime and manga began to flourish in the 1940s and 1950s, with foreign films (and layouts by American cartoonists), influencing people such as Osamu Tezuka, In the 1950s, anime studios began appearing across Japan. Hiroshi Takahata bought a studio named Japan Animated Films in 1948, renaming it Tōei Dōga, with an ambition to become "the Disney of the East." While there, Takahata met other animators such as Yasuji Mori, who directed Doodling Kitty, in May 1957. However, for the Japanese public, it wasn't until the release of Panda and the Magic Serpent in October 1958 that Japan fully entered into world of professional animation. While animators began to experiment with their own styles, using Western techniques, Tezuka Osamu began drawing shonen manga like Rob no Kishi (Knight of the Ribbon), which later became Princess Knight, trying to appeal to female readers, while also pioneering shoujo manga. Toei Animation and Mushi Production Toei Animation and Mushi Production was founded and produced the first color anime feature film in 1958, Hakujaden (The Tale of the White Serpent, 1958). It was released in the US in 1961 as well as Panda and the Magic Serpent. After the success of the project, Toei released a new feature-length animation annually. Toei's style was characterized by an emphasis on each animator bringing his own ideas to the production. The most extreme example