Roland Kelts, author of the book Japanamerica, recalled a conversation with Hayao Miyazaki about young anime creators. According to Kelts, the director lamented that they too often learn only from other people's anime, whereas creators previously sought ideas in classical art, such as painting and literature:
“Hayao Miyazaki once told me: ‘The problem with young anime creators is that they only study anime. When we were young, we studied French literature, Impressionism, read Dostoevsky. We absorbed everything. And then we went and made original anime. But if you've been watching only anime since childhood, in the end you're just chewing over the exact same thing.’”
Kelts also spoke about his work on Tezuka! God of Manga, a feature documentary directed by Jason Andrew Cohn dedicated to Osamu Tezuka, the creator of Astro Boy and Black Jack. The film will tell the story of how Tezuka became one of the leading creators of postwar Japan, why young readers became interested in more adult manga in the 1960s, and how he managed to recapture their attention thanks to Black Jack.
Interviews have already been recorded for the film with Katsuhiro Otomo (Akira), Naoki Urasawa (Monster), and Riyoko Ikeda (The Rose of Versailles). The filmmakers launched a Kickstarter campaign and expect to complete the project in time for the centenary of Tezuka's birth in 2028.