‘Persepolis’ author Marjane Satrapi dies of ‘sadness’ at 56
Theo Al Jazeera Staff
Marjane Satrapi, the French-Iranian author and director who gained global fame with her autobiographical graphic novel ‘Persepolis,’ died at age 56. Her family said she died of 'sadness' after the loss of her husband.
Marjane Satrapi, the French-Iranian author and director who gained global fame with her autobiographical graphic novel Persepolis, died at age 56. Her death was confirmed by the office of French President Emmanuel Macron on July 10 (local time).
Her family said in a statement to AFP that Satrapi died of “sadness” more than a year after her husband, Mattias Ripa, passed away.
President Macron paid tribute, calling her death “a loss of a leading figure of French culture and an artist dedicated to freedom, whose work carried a universal message and earned immense international renown.”
Satrapi was born in 1969 in Rasht, northern Iran. In 1983, amid growing extremism following the 1979 Iranian Revolution that brought Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini to power, her parents sent her to Austria to finish her education. Homesick, she returned to Iran and attended the University of Tehran, earning a bachelor’s degree in visual communication — the foundation of her artistic career.
She moved to France in 1994 and lived most of her life there, but always maintained a profound connection to her Iranian roots through her work.
Her black-and-white autobiographical graphic novel, first published in 2000, drew from her own experiences, especially the Iranian Islamic revolution and the aftermath of the war with Iraq. The coming-of-age story blends love, alcohol and punk rock with stark illustrations that immerse readers in the author’s world.
The film adaptation, co-directed by Satrapi, received wide acclaim. It was nominated for Best Animated Feature at the 2008 Oscars, won the Jury Prize at the 2007 Cannes Film Festival and a César for Best First Film.
“What we wanted to say is, if these people scare you, look more closely: they have parents, lovers, hopes, stories,” she told AFP in a 2007 interview at Cannes.
Satrapi went on to direct several films, including Chicken with Plums, The Voices with Ryan Reynolds, and Radioactive starring Rosamund Pike as scientist Marie Curie.
In 2024, she was awarded the Legion of Honor — France’s highest honor — but declined it, arguing that France had not done enough to support Iranians fighting for democracy. “Supporting the women’s revolution in Iran cannot be just photos or speeches,” she wrote in a letter to French authorities in January 2025. “When people fight for democracy, we should support them.”
