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Yesterday, NHK ran a documentary on Miyazaki, apparently the last of 4 parts (the 1st 3 of which I missed). Showed him working on "The Wind Rises" and struggling with how to stage key scenes even after production was well advanced.
A crowd scene of people fleeing the Kanto earthquake lasts only 4 seconds on-screen, but took more than a year to animate.
The 2011 Tsunami hit during that period; he went to the area to sign autographs & sketches, and to get a "feel" for the devastation.
Incidentally, though he was in his 70s, you see him smoking in almost every shot.
