Satoshi Dezaki is a Japanese anime director, producer, and screenwriter born on June 26, 1940 in Tokyo. After graduating from Tokyo Metropolitan North High School, he attended Hosei University. He is the older brother of the late, renowned anime director Osamu Dezaki. Before entering the animation industry, Dezaki worked at Toshiba for seven years while also serving as a coach for the company's volleyball team. He left both his position at Toshiba and Hosei University to pursue a career in animation, beginning work at Gisaburo Sugii’s company Art Fresh alongside his brother. His early roles in the industry included writing the screenplay for the series Attack No. 1 and creating storyboards for Star of the Giants. In 1969, Dezaki became a freelancer, providing direction, scripts, and production work for major studios such as Tokyo Movie Shinsha, Tatsunoko Production, and Sunrise. He later founded his own animation production company, Magic Bus, in 1977.

Dezaki’s career as a director includes a wide range of films, original video animations (OVAs), and television series. In 1986, he made his feature film directorial debut with the theatrical anime They Were Eleven, which he also storyboarded. His other directorial credits include the films Urusei Yatsura: The Final Chapter, Urusei Yatsura: Inaba the Dreammaker, and the OVAs Riki-Oh: Tōkatsu Jigoku and Riki-Oh 2: Horobi no Ko. He was the chief director for the television series Play Ball and Wonder Beat Scramble, and directed episodes of series such as The Rose of Versailles. One notable example of his OVA direction is Onimaru: Senjō ni Kakeru Itsutsu no Seishun from 1990. Beyond directing, his extensive production work includes serving as a producer for Big Wars and Sword for Truth, as well as writing screenplays for films like Shirahata no Shōjo Ryūko. In addition to his directorial projects, Dezaki contributed his skills as a storyboard artist and episode director to numerous other series, including Mighty Orbots, New Tetsujin-28, and various entries in the long-running Kyojin no Hoshi (Star of the Giants) franchise.

The artistic identity of Satoshi Dezaki is often framed in contrast to that of his younger brother. While Osamu Dezaki was known for his innovative and experimental directing techniques, Satoshi Dezaki is recognized for a more traditional and cinematic style. His work is characterized by a strong focus on realistic human movement and detailed depictions of action, skills that he attributed to his experience coaching volleyball. This is particularly evident in his sports anime, including baseball series such as Captain, Play Ball, and his extensive work on the Star of the Giants franchise. His strengths as a director were highly regarded by influential figures in the industry, including Osamu Tezuka, who entrusted him with the direction of the special Undersea Super Train: Marine Express.

Satoshi Dezaki holds a significant place in the anime industry due to his longevity, his role in founding a production company, and his body of work across several decades. As the founder of Magic Bus, he took on the role of a producer and creator, helping to bring numerous projects to fruition. His career spans from the late 1960s, contributing to foundational sports and drama anime, through the OVA boom of the 1980s and 1990s, and into the 21st century with series like Play Ball. While his brother Osamu may be more widely known for a distinct directorial signature, Satoshi Dezaki’s consistent output and craftsmanship, particularly in adapting sports manga and directing character-driven stories, have made him a respected and enduring figure in the history of Japanese animation. He continued to be active in the industry later in his career, traveling to China to train a new generation of animators.