Marjane Satrapi
She turned the intimate, painful story of growing up during the Iranian Revolution into a universal graphic novel masterpiece.
Born 1969 (age 57)·French-Iranian Author and director·Birthday: November 22·Generation X
Biography
Marjane Satrapi uses the deceptively simple medium of the comic to explore the profound complexities of history, identity, and exile. Born in Rasht, Iran, she was a child of privilege and Marxist intellectuals, witnessing the Islamic Revolution and the Iran-Iraq War from a uniquely perceptive vantage point. Sent to Europe for safety, she grappled with displacement before finding her voice in art. 'Persepolis,' her black-and-white graphic memoir, was a seismic event. It rendered the Iranian experience with raw honesty, wry humor, and stark visual power, becoming an international bestseller and critically adored film. Satrapi refused to be pigeonholed as solely a chronicler of Iran; she directed live-action films like 'The Voices' and 'Radioactive,' bringing her distinctive, bold visual style to wildly different subjects, always with a focus on human contradiction.
Generation X
1965–1980
The latchkey kids. Raised during divorce, recession, and the end of the Cold War. Skeptical, self-reliant, media-literate. They invented indie culture, grunge, and the early internet — then watched the Boomers take credit.
Marjane was born in 1969, placing them squarely in the Generation X. The events that shaped this generation — economic uncertainty, the end of the Cold War, and the rise of personal computing — shaped the world they entered and the choices available to them.
#1 When Marjane Was Born
The biggest hits of 1969
#1 Movie
Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid
Best Picture
Midnight Cowboy
#1 TV Show
Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In
Marjane's Life & Times
The world at every milestone
1969Born
Apollo 11: humans walk on the Moon; Woodstock festival
Gas: $0.35/galHome: $15,550Min wage: $1.60/hrPresident: Richard Nixon"Sugar, Sugar" — The ArchiesBest Picture: Midnight Cowboy
1974Started school
Nixon resigns the presidency
Gas: $0.53/galHome: $22,600Min wage: $2.00/hrPresident: Gerald Ford"The Way We Were" — Barbra StreisandBest Picture: The Godfather Part II
1982Became a teenager
Michael Jackson releases Thriller
Gas: $1.22/galHome: $55,200Min wage: $3.35/hrPresident: Ronald Reagan"Physical" — Olivia Newton-JohnBest Picture: Gandhi
1985Could drive
Live Aid concerts raise money for Ethiopian famine
Gas: $1.12/galHome: $62,900Min wage: $3.35/hrPresident: Ronald Reagan"Careless Whisper" — Wham!Best Picture: Out of Africa
1987Could vote
Black Monday stock market crash
Gas: $0.90/galHome: $72,400Min wage: $3.35/hrPresident: Ronald Reagan"Walk Like an Egyptian" — The BanglesBest Picture: The Last Emperor
1990Turned 21
Hubble Space Telescope launched; Germany reunifies
Gas: $1.15/galHome: $79,100Min wage: $3.80/hrPresident: George H.W. Bush"Hold On" — Wilson PhillipsBest Picture: Dances with Wolves
1999Turned 30
Columbine shooting; Y2K panic builds
Gas: $1.17/galHome: $113,900Min wage: $5.15/hrPresident: Bill Clinton"Believe" — CherBest Picture: American Beauty
2009Turned 40
Michael Jackson dies; Bitcoin created
Gas: $2.35/galHome: $148,500Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Barack Obama"Boom Boom Pow" — The Black Eyed PeasBest Picture: The Hurt Locker
2019Turned 50
First image of a black hole; Hong Kong protests
Gas: $2.60/galHome: $224,400Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Donald Trump"Old Town Road" — Lil Nas XBest Picture: Parasite
2026Age 57 today
Gas: $3.91/galPresident: Donald Trump
Key Achievements
- Authored 'Persepolis,' a graphic novel memoir that has been translated into over 40 languages and is a staple of modern literature.
- Co-directed the animated film adaptation of 'Persepolis,' which was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Animated Feature.
- Her graphic novel 'Chicken with Plums' was adapted into a live-action feature film which she also co-directed.
- Directed the 2019 biographical film 'Radioactive,' starring Rosamund Pike as Marie Curie.
Did You Know?
She is a descendant of the Qajar dynasty, which ruled Persia (Iran) from 1789 to 1925.
She initially studied visual communication, not fine art, and began her career illustrating children's books.
She is fluent in Persian, French, English, German, and Swedish.
She lived in Tehran during the Iran-Iraq War and has described hearing missile explosions as a teenager.
“I believe that an image must be seen before it is read.”
