Marjane Satrapi, 'persepolis' Author And Filmmaker, Has Died At 56

PARIS — Acclaimed Iranian-French cartoonist and filmmaker Marjane Satrapi, a salient advocator for women’s rights, has died astatine 56, nan French presidency said Thursday.

“Her passing marks nan nonaccomplishment of a starring fig of French civilization and an creator devoted to freedom, whose activity carried a cosmopolitan connection and earned her immense world acclaim,” nan French presidency said successful a statement.

President Emmanuel Macron and his woman “pay tribute to a singular creator who transformed an Iranian puerility into a cosmopolitan fable,” nan connection said.

News broadcaster BFM TV and different French media reported Satrapi has “died of sadness” a small complete a twelvemonth aft nan decease of her husband, Swedish movie shaper and character Mattias Ripa, according to a connection from group adjacent to nan artist.

The French Academy of Fine Arts, of which she was a member, expressed its heavy sadness successful a societal media statement, paying tribute to “a passionate advocator for cinema and movie education” who earlier this twelvemonth created a instauration to thief world students travel to Paris to study film.

Satrapi is best-known for her monochrome autobiographical comic book and movie “Persepolis,” a coming-of-age communicative group against nan Islamic Revolution successful her autochthonal Iran.

“Persepolis” won nan Film Critics Grand Prix astatine nan Cannes Festival successful 2007 and nan César Award for adapted screenplay successful 2008, successful summation to being nominated for animated characteristic astatine nan 2008 Oscars.

The film, which specifications her life successful Tehran arsenic nan willful girl of intelligence Marxists, is simply a reminder that Iranians are conscionable for illustration everyone else, Satrapi told The Associated Press successful a 2007 question and reply successful Cannes.

“What we wanted to opportunity is, if these group scare you, look closer: They person parents, they person lovers, they person hope, they person stories,” she said.

Iranian authorities astatine nan clip protested nan movie’s inclusion astatine Cannes, sending a missive to nan French Embassy successful Tehran.

Satrapi was calved connected Nov. 22, 1969, successful Rasht, Iran, but her parents sent her to Vienna, Austria, successful 1983 to decorativeness her studies because of nan extremism successful their state pursuing nan 1979 Revolution that brought Ayatollah Khomeini to power.

But Satrapi, who recovered Austria dispute and who desperately missed her parents, returned to Iran successful 1989 to be Tehran University, wherever she earned a grade successful ocular communications.

By nan clip she graduated, Satrapi decided she yet was fresh to time off Iran and judge nan opportunities her parents had been truthful hopeless to springiness her a decade before. In 1994 she moved to France. She studied successful Strasbourg and later moved to Paris.

Her schematic novels besides see “Broderies” (“Embroideries”) and “Poulet aux prunes” (“Chicken pinch plums”), which besides was adapted into a film. As a filmmaker, she has directed respective useful including “La Bande des Jotas” (“The Gang of Jotas”) and “Radioactive” (“Madame Curie”), a curriculum vitae astir nan Polish physicist Marie Curie.

Satrapi successful 2023 coordinated nan book “Femme, vie, liberté” (“Woman, Life, Freedom”) together pinch a group of artists and academics to exemplify nan revolts that occurred successful Iran aft nan decease of Mahsa Amini successful 2022 astatine nan hands of nan alleged “morality police.” The activity denounces nan repression and deficiency of quality authorities that Iranian society, particularly women, suffers astatine nan hands of nan Iranian regime, nan instauration said.

Satrapi was elected personnel of nan French Academy of Fine Arts successful 2024. She besides was offered France’s highest award, nan Legion of Honor, that aforesaid twelvemonth but declined it, arguing France was not doing capable to support Iranian group fighting for democracy.

“Supporting nan women’s gyration successful Iran cannot beryllium reduced to photos aliases speeches,” she wrote successful a January 2025 missive to French authorities. “When group are fighting for democracy, we should support them.”

In 2024, Satrapi won nan Princess of Asturias Foundation grant successful Spain for connection and humanities. The statement said she was “an basal sound successful nan defense of quality authorities and freedom.” The judges described her arsenic “a awesome of civic engagement led by women.”

Satrapi’s husband, Ripa, died successful April 2025 astatine 53. On her Instagram page, only 1 connection was near successful a bid of posts: “Because I person mislaid nan emotion of my life.”