Marjane Satrapi facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Marjane Satrapi
مرجان ساتراپی
Satrapi in 2008
Born	Marjane Ebrahimi (1969-11-22)22 November 1969 Rasht, Pahlavi Iran
Died	4 June 2026(2026-06-04) (aged 56) Paris, France
Occupation	Artist writer
Notable work	Persepolis Chicken with Plums The Voices Radioactive
Spouse(s)	Mattias Ripa ​ (died 2025)​
Awards	Full list

Marjane Satrapi ( Persian: مرجان ساتراپی November 22, 1969 – June 4, 2026) was a talented French and Iranian artist, writer, and film director. She was famous for her amazing graphic novels, which are like comic books for older readers, and for the movies she directed. Her most well-known works include the graphic novel Persepolis and the animated film based on it. She also created Chicken with Plums and directed the movie Radioactive, which was about the scientist Marie Curie.

Marjane Satrapi's Life and Creative Journey

Growing Up in Iran

Marjane Satrapi was born in Rasht, Iran. When she was very young, her family moved to Tehran, where she grew up. She came from a family that cared a lot about fairness and supported ideas that helped everyone. Her parents were active in politics, working for changes against the ruler at the time, the Shah. Marjane's family had a long history; her maternal great-grandfather was Naser al-Din Shah Qajar, who was a ruler of Iran many years ago. Her maternal grandfather was also a governor in the Gilan province.

After the Iranian Revolution in 1979, the government changed, and her family had to live under new rules. During her childhood, Marjane saw many difficult changes and challenges in her country. Some of her family and friends faced serious difficulties because of their beliefs.

Marjane looked up to her paternal uncle, Anoosh. He had faced severe consequences for his political beliefs and had even lived away from home in the Soviet Union for a time. Marjane admired him greatly, and he treated her like his own daughter. When Anoosh returned to Iran, he again faced serious trouble and passed away due to his political actions. Marjane was allowed to visit him one last time.

Teenage Years and Moving Abroad

Marjane's parents wanted her to be strong and stand up for herself. However, they became worried about her safety as she grew older. As a teenager, she faced challenges for expressing herself freely and for enjoying things that were not allowed by the new rules.

To keep her safe and help her continue her education, her parents sent her to live in Vienna, Austria, in 1983 when she was 14. She attended the Lycée Français de Vienne. Life in Vienna was not always easy. She moved homes often and even had a very difficult period, experiencing being without a home for a while. After getting very sick, she recovered and decided to return to Iran.

Back in Iran, she studied visual communication and earned a master's degree from Islamic Azad University in Tehran. When she was 21, Marjane married Reza, who had served in the Iran–Iraq War. They later divorced. Her parents encouraged her to live in Europe permanently, believing Iran was no longer the best place for her. So, she moved to Strasbourg, France, to study at the Haute école des arts du Rhin (HEAR).

Marjane Satrapi's Creative Works

Famous Comic Books

Marjane Satrapi became known around the world for her autobiographical comic books. These are often called "graphic novels" because they tell a long story with pictures, like a novel. Her most famous work is Persepolis, which was first published in French. It tells the story of her childhood in Iran and her teenage years in Europe.

Persepolis won an important award called the Angoulême Coup de Coeur Award. Later, some schools in Chicago tried to remove Persepolis from classrooms because it contained some grown-up themes. This caused a lot of discussion and protests.

Marjane also created other graphic novels like Embroideries and Chicken with Plums, which also won awards. She even wrote articles for The New York Times. Marjane preferred to call her works "comic books" rather than "graphic novels." She felt that "graphic novel" sounded too serious and that "comic book" was a perfectly good name for her art.

Directing Movies

Marjane Satrapi at the premiere of Persepolis

Persepolis was turned into an animated movie with the same name. Marjane helped write and direct the film with Vincent Paronnaud. The movie was shown at the 2007 Cannes Film Festival and won a special award. It was also nominated for an Academy Award for Best Animated Feature in 2008, making Marjane the first woman to be nominated in that category. The film was very successful and won many other awards.

Marjane and Vincent Paronnaud worked together again in 2011 to make a live-action movie called Chicken with Plums, based on another one of her graphic novels.

In 2012, Marjane directed and acted in a comedy crime film she wrote called La bande des Jotas (Gang of the Jotas).

In 2014, she directed The Voices, a black comedy film starring Ryan Reynolds. It's about a factory worker who has unusual conversations with his pets, leading to unexpected and sometimes dark events.

In 2019, Marjane directed Radioactive, a movie about the life of the famous scientist and two-time Nobel Prize winner Marie Curie. The film was released online in 2020.

In 2021, she lent her voice to the French animated short film The Soloists. Her most recent film, a black comedy called [[Dear Paris|Dear Paris (Paradis Paris)], was shown at the Torino Film Festival in 2024. It explored different stories about how people's lives are affected by loss.

Standing Up for What's Right

Marjane Satrapi was also active in supporting important causes. After the Iranian elections in 2009, she spoke out about concerns regarding the election results in Iran.

In 2022, Marjane strongly supported the Mahsa Amini protests in Iran. These protests were about women's rights and freedom. She helped create a graphic book to share the story of this movement with people in Western countries. She believed the Woman, Life, Freedom movement was a cultural revolution. She also supported protests for freedom and rights against the government in Iran.

In January 2025, Marjane was offered the Legion of Honour, which is France's highest official award. However, she chose to decline it. She explained that she felt France wasn't doing enough to support Iranian people who had moved there, and she wanted to show her feelings about the situation in Iran. She made it clear that her decision was not against France, a country she deeply loved and considered her own.

Personal Life and Legacy

Marjane Satrapi lived in Paris, France. She was married to Mattias Ripa, a Swedish actor and producer, until he passed away in 2025. After his death, Marjane created the Mattias and Marjane Ripa-Satrapi Cinema Foundation. This foundation helps international students who want to study filmmaking in Paris.

Besides her native language, Persian, Marjane was very good at languages and spoke French, English, Swedish, German, and Italian.

Marjane Satrapi passed away in Paris on June 4, 2026, at the age of 56. Her family shared that she passed away due to deep sadness after her husband's death.

Awards and Recognition

• 2001: Angoulême Coup de Coeur Award for Persepolis
• 2002: Angoulême Prize for Scenario for Persepolis: Tome 2
• 2005: Angoulême Best Comic Book Award for Poulet aux prunes
• 2007: Jury Prize for Persepolis (tied with Silent Light), Cannes Film Festival
• 2007: Best Animation: Los Angeles Film Critics Association
• 2008: Gat Perich Award
• 2008: Lulu of the Year Award (Friends of Lulu)
• 2009: Doctor honoris causa from two universities in Belgium
• 2013: Noor Iranian Film Festival award for Best Feature Film Director, for Chicken with Plums
• 2024: Princess of Asturias Award for Communication and Humanities.
• 2025: (Declined) Legion of Honour.

Books by Marjane Satrapi

In French

• Persepolis (2000), Paris: L'Association, ISBN: 2-84414-058-0
• Persepolis v2, (2001), L'Association, ISBN: 2-84414-079-3
• Persepolis v3, (2002), L'Association, ISBN: 2-84414-104-8
• Persepolis v4, (2003), L'Association, ISBN: 2-84414-137-4
• Sagesses et malices de la Perse (2001, with Lila Ibrahim-Ouali and Bahman Namwar-Motalg, Albin Michel, ISBN: 2-226-11872-1)
• Les monstres n'aiment pas la lune (2001, Nathan Jeunesse, ISBN: 2-09-282094-X)
• Ulysse au pays des fous (2001, with Jean-Pierre Duffour, Nathan Jeunesse, ISBN: 2-09-210847-6)
• Ajdar (2002, Nathan Jeunesse, ISBN: 2-09-211033-0)
• Broderies (2003, L'Association, ISBN: 2-84414-095-5)
• Poulet aux prunes (2004), Paris: L'Association, ISBN: 2-84414-159-5
• Le Soupir (2004, Bréal Jeunesse, ISBN: 2-7495-0325-6)
• Femme, vie, liberté (2023, L'Iconoclaste, ISBN: 2-37880-378-8)

In English

• Embroideries (2005, Pantheon ISBN: 978-0-375-42305-5)
• Chicken with Plums (2006), New York: Pantheon Books, ISBN: 978-0-375-42415-1
• Monsters Are Afraid of the Moon (2006, Bloomsbury, ISBN: 1-58234-744-1)
• The Sigh. Bloom Entertainment. 2011. ISBN: 978-1-936393-46-6

Marjane Satrapi's Filmography

See also

In Spanish: Marjane Satrapi para niños