Marjane Satrapi, Special Guest at FIC.UBA

The French-Iranian director, scriptwriter, painter and cartoonist will be a guest of honour at the second edition of FIC.UBA. Born in Iran, on the shores of the Caspian Sea, and a strong advocate for human rights, the director of the multi-award-winning Persepolis (2007) will be honoured for her prolific career and a retrospective of her filmography will be held.

Satrapi grew up in Tehran, where she studied at a French high school before moving to Vienna, and later to Strasbourg to study Decorative Arts. In 1997, Satrapi moved to Paris, where after years of struggle she published a series of graphic novels, among which Persepolis (2000) —which follows the life of an Iranian girl from the Islamic Revolution to the present— stands out. The animated film adaptation achieved enormous international success and won the Jury Prize at the Cannes Film Festival; in 2008, it received an Oscar nomination for Best Animated Feature and won two César Awards for Best First Film and Best Adaptation.

Following her success as a cartoonist and screenwriter, Satrapi built a career as a film director in both France and the United States. Meanwhile, her visual works continue to be part of prestigious art galleries such as the Grand Palais in Paris and the Françoise Livinec Gallery. This year, in addition to premiering a new feature film (Dear Paris), she received a nomination to the Academy of Fine Arts in the film section and one of her drawings became the inspiration for the official tapestry of the Paris 2024 Olympic Games.

Created in exile, Satrapi's work, from her early illustrations for children's books to her recognition in the world of graphic novels and in cinematography, is characterised by her advocacy for human rights, tolerance and equality. At the same time, her career stands out for its undeniable coherence: in every format or artistic branch, she has used her powerful voice to persistently criticise the Iranian regime and the fierce oppression faced by the women in her country since the 1979 revolution.

The retrospective that will be presented at the FIC.UBA includes his complete filmography: in addition to Persepolis, Chicken with Plums will be screened (co-directed in 2011 with Vincent Paronnaud, about the love story of a violinist from Tehran); The Gang of the Jotas (2013), a blend of black comedy and road movie; The Voices (2014), her foray into the American mainstream with a fantasy genre film; Radioactive (2020), about the life and work of Nobel Prize winner Marie Sklodowska-Curie; and Dear Paris (2024), his new film -which also will be screened at the Opening Ceremony as Premiere in Argentina- which tells the story of a former opera star. Exploring her filmography confirms the versatility and curiosity of a unique artist.


Ph. ©Rahi Rezvani