Dezaki Osamu Japanese animation director and animator Date of Birth: 18.11.1943 Country: Japan

Biography of Osamu Dezaki

Osamu Dezaki was a Japanese animation director and animator. He was born on November 18, 1943, in Tokyo, Japan. In his childhood and youth, Dezaki dreamed of becoming a manga artist. However, after the anime boom started, he changed his focus and joined the Tadashi Osamu Studio "Mushi Productions" in 1963.

Dezaki's first work at the studio was as an in-betweener and then as a key animator and director for several episodes of the groundbreaking TV series "Astro Boy" (1963-1966). During this time, Dezaki met and collaborated with several future anime classics who would become his long-time collaborators even after the studio disbanded. His most fruitful collaboration was with character designer and artist Akio Sugino.

In 1968, Dezaki left "Mushi Productions" but continued to collaborate with both the studio and Osamu Tezuka. In 1970, Dezaki and Sugino began working on the TV series "Ashita no Joe" (1970-1971) at "Mushi Productions." This series, dedicated to the life of a delinquent turned professional boxer, became a cult classic and remains one of the most popular anime in Japan.

In 1972, Dezaki, along with a group of friends and colleagues from "Mushi Productions," including Rintaro, founded the studio "Madhouse," with Dezaki as its first president. However, he did not stay in the position for long, as his passion lied more in creative work than in management.

Dezaki and Sugino's next sports hit was the TV series "Ace o Nerae!" (1973-1974), created at "TMS" and dedicated to a young tennis player, becoming immensely popular and elevating women's tennis in Japan.

Throughout the 1970s, Dezaki directed and animated various TV series, including "Karate Baka Ichidai" (1973-1974), "Hajime Ningen Giatrus" (1974-1976), "Ganba Bouken Tachi" (1975), "Manga Sekai Mukashi Banashi" (1976-1979, together with Rintaro), "Rittai Anime Ie Naki Ko Remi" (1977-1978), and "Takarajima" (1978-1979). In the 1980s, Dezaki, together with Sugino, created two significant feature films, "Space Adventurer Cobra Gekijouban" (1982) and "Golgo 13" (1983), with the latter being the first anime to utilize computer graphics.

From the late 1980s onwards, Dezaki shifted his focus to the overall direction of anime production. Under his guidance, notable works were released, such as the OAV "Ichi Pound no Fukuin" (1988), Lupin III films, OAV series "Souryuuden" (1991-1993), and the TV series "Tezuka Osamu no Kyuuyaku Seisho Monogatari" (1997).

In 1991, Dezaki and Sugino collaborated again on the TV series "Onii-sama e..." (1991-1992), based on a manga by Riyoko Ikeda.

Their final collaboration to date is the TV series "Hakugei Densetsu" (1997, 1998-1999), an adaptation of Herman Melville's novel "Moby Dick."

Dezaki's talent lies in storytelling through animation and conveying emotions through character animation. He successfully worked in both male and female anime genres, creating a series of cult classics and unforgettable works.