Marjane Satrapi is an Iranian-born French contemporary graphic novelist, illustrator, animated film director, and children's book author. Her name had never crossed my mind, until I saw her “Persepolis”. It is a film based on her book. With the use of the series of monochrome drawings, she tells us a story of a young girl growing up in Tehran during the Iranian Revolution. The story is written in a style of a memoir and a very close depiction of the author’s real life. Satrapi was born in 1969 in Rasht and grew up in Tehran. She was raised in a highly educated atmosphere, where she was exposed to the westernized stratum of Iranian society. Growing up in a happy family, she spent her first 9 years surrounded by her independent minded parents and beloved grandmother, who was also her friend and a mentor. During her teenage years she became drawn to the pop and rock music, fashion and many other aspects of the Western culture until it all changed. After the Iranian revolution Iran turned into a hostile place for women. For someone who was raised on the principles of basic human rights, it was very hard to adjust in the new oppressive society. Therefore, Marjane quickly developed an attitude of a rebel.
Marjan’s parents became concerned with the future of their daughter living in the country with such strict behavioral codes for women. At the age of fourteen, Satrapi was sent to Vienna, Austria to attend French curriculum secondary school. She had spent most of her teenage years in Europe. Living in the society different from the one she was used to, gave her an opportunity to experiment with her life. Unfortunately, casual sex, drug use and rock'n'roll didn't make her feel anymore accepted. She didn't feel like herself anymore. Eventually, moving from one apartment to another, she became homeless. After spending almost 2 month on the streets, she finally decided to return back to her home country. In real life, Satrapi also returned to Iran, where after several years she received a Master’s degree from the University of Tehran. According to the story, life in Europe only strengthened her oppositional views on human rights and freedom. She realized that Iran became even more inhospitable than she remembers. She had started attending numerous secret events in Tehran, in order to make her living bearable. In the age of 21 she got married but had divorced in about 4 years and permanently moved to Paris afterwards.
The main reason that made pick Satrapi as an influential artist is that she writes as both an insider and an outsider, she has that unique view of important historical and cultural change. In one of her interviews she said, “You know, the feminists become very angry when I say I am not a feminist. I am a humanist. I believe in human beings" (Thefword.org.uk), but even when she says that, I'm pretty sure most of us would be able to notice some gynocriticism in her work. Maggie Humm described, “Gynocriticism is a way of assessing works of art specifically in relation to the interest and desires of women” (Humm 95). In “Persepolis” we can clearly see Satrapi’s concentration on Iranian women being targeted for modesty while the men remain relatively free, a rushed marriage, balancing cultural expectations with personal ambitions. There is a special representation of the veil, which plays a large part in lives of many muslim women. In “Persepolis”, I felt that Satrapi portrays the veil as something that meant to oppress the woman, make her submissive, passive and weak. I also think, her representation of the women helps breaking down the stereotype of Iranian women in general.
In “Feminism and Film”, Maggie Humm wrote, “Yet two relevant events suggest that the marriage of literature and film is one unlikely to be easily dissolved even if it is always in crisis” (Humm 90). In Satrapi’s case, there is no crisis at all. Satrapi took part in both writing the story and bringing it to life in film. She personally drew all of the characters and passed them to the team of twenty designers and animators so they could create every angle, every motion and every facial expression of each character. Therefore, she is both an author and an auteur of the “Persepolis”.
Another characteristic of this production that made this film extra interesting for me is it’s style of animation. “Persepolis” is one of the few black and white films that is determinedly 2D, which separates it from many modern glossy animations. Satrapi describes the animation techniques as "stylized realism" (Parstime.com). She wanted the drawing to be completely life-like, not like a cartoon. Therefore, unlike a cartoon, production team didn't have that much of a margin in terms of facial expressions and movement. The whole film is hand drawn and consists of 600 distinct figures, from the lead characters to crowds of extras.
Utilization of stylized and abstract graphics had allowed authors to reproduce very touching images of Satrapi's life, which on the other side, helped her to make a very bold statement upon human rights in general and showed the world the other side of Iran. Animators took advantage of clean, yet expressive lines when worked on characters eyes, mouth and gestures. Therefore, we are able to feel every bit of their emotions and many times, they are so convincing, they bring us to tears. 
The setting of the film has also played major role in establishing the mood. There are few textures, mixed with shades and blots that are very stylized and plain. Animators also took advantage of using a contrast when changing the composition of the environment from dark to light.
It is hard to underestimate the value of the “Persepolis”. This film has a storyline that is also intertwined with the political story. Not only we are living through Marjane’s struggles, we are also becoming involved. Use of film as political opposition allows the audience to break their stereotypical views on Islamic cultures as well as to become aware of the problem of the discrimination against women both in Iran and around the world.
Works Cited
- Humm, Maggie. Feminism and film. Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 1997. Print.
- http://youtu.be/v9onZpQix_w (Link to the video with the interview with Mrs. Satrapi)
- http://www.movie2k.to/Persepolis-watch-movie-670232.html (Full movie, Sorry for the pop ups).
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