Iranian-French cartoonist and filmmaker Marjane Satrapi dies at 56

Acclaimed IranianFrench cartoonist and filmmaker Marjane Satrapi a prominent advocate for womens rights has died at 56 the French presidency said ThursdayHer passing marks the loss of a leading figure of French culture and an artist devoted to freedom whose work carried a universal message and earned her immense international acclaim the French presidency said in a statementPresident Emmanuel Macron and his wife pay tribute to a remarkable artist who transformed an Iranian childhood into a universal fable the statement saidNews broadcaster BFM TV and other French media reported Satrapi has died of sadness a little over a year after the death of her husband Swedish film producer and actor Mattias Ripa according to a statement from people close to the artistThe French Academy of Fine Arts of which she was a member expressed its deep sadness in a social media statement paying tribute to a passionate advocate for cinema and film education who earlier this year created a foundation to help international students come to Paris to study filmSatrapi is bestknown for her monochrome autobiographical comic book and film Persepolis a comingofage tale set against the Islamic Revolution in her native IranPersepolis won the Film Critics Grand Prix at the Cannes Festival in 2007 and the Cesar Award for Best Adapted Screenplay in 2008 in addition to being nominated for Best Animated Feature at the 2008 OscarsThe film which details her life in Tehran as the willful daughter of intellectual Marxists is a reminder that Iranians are just like everyone else Satrapi told The Associated Press in a 2007 interview in CannesWhat we wanted to say is if these people scare you look closer They have parents they have lovers they have hope they have stories she saidIranian authorities at the time protested the movies inclusion at Cannes sending a letter to the French Embassy in TehranSatrapi was born on November 22 1969 in Rasht Iran but her parents sent her to Vienna Austria in 1983 to finish her studies because of the extremism in their country following the 1979 Revolution that brought Ayatollah Khomeini to powerBut Satrapi who found Austria hostile and who desperately missed her parents returned to Iran in 1989 to attend Tehran University where she earned a degree in visual communicationsBy the time she graduated Satrapi decided she finally was ready to leave Iran and accept the opportunities her parents had been so desperate to give her a decade before In 1994 she moved to France She studied in Strasbourg and later moved to ParisHer graphic novels also include Broderies Embroideries and Poulet aux prunes Chicken with plums which also was adapted into a film As a filmmaker she has directed several works including La Bande des Jotas The Gang of Jotas and Radioactive Madame Curie a biography about the Polish physicist Marie CurieSatrapi in 2023 coordinated the book Femme vie liberte Woman Life Freedom together with a group of artists and academics to illustrate the revolts that occurred in Iran after the death of Mahsa Amini in 2022 at the hands of the socalled morality policeThe work denounces the repression and lack of human rights that Iranian society especially women suffers at the hands of the Iranian regime the foundation saidSatrapi was elected member of the French Academy of Fine Arts in 2024 She also was offered Frances highest award the Legion of Honor that same year but declined it arguing France was not doing enough to support Iranian people fighting for democracySupporting the womens revolution in Iran cannot be reduced to photos or speeches she wrote in a January 2025 letter to French authorities When people are fighting for democracy we should support themIn 2024 Satrapi won the Princess of Asturias Foundation award in Spain for communication and humanities The organisation said she was an essential voice in the defence of human rights and freedom The judges described her as a symbol of civic engagement led by womenSatrapis husband died in April 2025 at 53 On her Instagram page only one message was left in a series of posts Because I have lost the love of my life