Marjane Satrapi

[Rasputin]

High flying, adored, so young, the instant queen,

A rich beautiful thing of all the talents, a cross between

A fantasy of the bedroom and a saint …

You were just a back street girl

Hustling and fighting

Scratching and biting

High flying, adored, did you believe in your wildest moments

All this would be yours, that you'd become the lady of them all?

-The CHE, in Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Musical EVITA





Founded in 1989, the European Film Academy (EFA) currently unites 1,800 European film professionals with the common aim of promoting European film culture. Throughout the year, the EFA initiates and participates in a series of activities dealing with film politics as well as economic, artistic, and training aspects. The program includes conferences, seminars and workshops, and a common goal is to build a bridge between creativity and the industry. These activities culminate in the annual presentation of the European Film Awards. Presided by German Director Wim Wenders (Paris Texas, Wings of Desire) since 1996, Forty-two movies from 26 nations will compete for the next batch of awards bestowed by the European Film Academy. See Complete List of nominees and Categories. The European Film Awards are so determined to get ahead of the Oscars and, therefore perhaps to influence them, that they jump ahead of the whole annual derby. Winners will be announced this year on Dec. 1 in Spain. That's just days before the National Board of Review announces its list of honorees in New York City, thus officially kicking off the Yankee kudos race. Because of that timing, the eligibility period of the European Film Award doesn't follow a typical calendar year like the Oscars. Thus its contenders usually straddle two derbies. Ditto this year. For example, the current list includes stragglers from the last Oscar race -- 'The Last King of Scotland,' 'The Queen,' 'Black Book' and 'Perfume' -- trotting alongside newcomers like 'La Vie en Rose,' 'Once' and … 'Persepolis.'


Thus Marjane Satrapi’s animated film on a childhood growing up in Revolutionary Iran and then in exile is in competition once again after making headlines for its critically acclaimed Cannes Jury Prize Film that received a rare 20 minutes Standing Ovation during its first screening at Cannes. It may also represent France in several categories including best animation in the upcoming 80th annual Oscars ceremony that will take place in 2008. Given the deep subject treatment in Persepolis, it certainly has great chances of beating other would be contenders as Pixar's Ratatouille, 20th Century Fox's The Simpsons Movie or DreamWorks' Bee Movie which despite their great technological breakthroughs and humor may not live up to a masterpiece like Persepolis that has already become a Classic in France and appears as emblematic of an entire new generation of European animation filmmakers wishing to make equally artistic and political statements in the lines of their peers in French New Wave Cinema, Italian Neo Realism or German Expressionist Cinema all of which find strong echoes in Marjane Satrapi’s excellent Persepolis. The Winners of the 20th European Film Awards 2007 will be announced during the Awards Ceremony on December 1 in Berlin.

More to Come in the next months, so stay tuned …

[Rasputin]

[Rasputin]

attended the Persepolis premier on Sunday night at the New York film Festival in the Met’s Avery Fisher Hall. Marjane Satrapi, Catherine Deneuve, Chiara Mastroianni, and Vincent Paronnaud were all in tow and greeted the audience on stage before the film started. The audience was especially excited to see Catherine Deneuve, giving her roaring applause. A great mix of people, the crowd came with familiar enthusiasm, as if they had all read the Persepolis books and were long awaiting the arrival of the film, much like I had been. Marjane had a few quick words of thanks and then introduced the film.

The animation is absolutely mesmerizing, drawing you in from the opening titles with great music, an imaginative storyline, fabulous choice of colors, backgrounds, and movement.

I won’t bore you with the details of the actual storyline, because if you are reading this, you are already a fan and you have already read the books. You probably also have guessed that the storyline is just a small part of this delightfully unique experience.

Satrapi should be applauded for gathering such great talent. The voices make you fall in love with Marjane's character and her family instantly. Co-director Vincent Paronnaud has brought considerable expertise to the mix and also managed to keep the original style of the comic books, bringing the characters to life in a very real way. The use of music and abstract sequences also set the mood for every scene just perfectly. Marjane's sense of humor and self-deprecation also balance well the political tidbits and history lessons which are discretely woven into the story. The style of animation, character designs and the fluidity of the film are very fresh. Indeed a creative way to depict such a complex and innocent story. Overall, the film is funny, serious, important, and very timely.


One of the most outspoken characters is Marjane’s grandmother 'Mami', who teaches Marjane very valuable lessons. In one touching scene Mami tells her granddaughter that in order to keep her breasts smelling good, she stuffs jasmine flowers into her bra every morning. These delicate white flowers follow us in a beautiful theme to finish the film in the most vivid way, leaving a trail of jasmine scent in the theatre, cleverly tugging at every Iranian's heart and making me feel like I was seven again.

For years now, people have asked us why Iran is the way that it is. Marjane has in one fell swoop managed to not only tell an engaging story but also to put into perspective the history and psyche of the Iranian people. Above all, I think this story is such a personal and amazing one that it should be watched by young and old around the world. The circumstances in Iran could have happened anywhere and the world needs to understand the political underpinnings of the country.


Having had very similar experiences to Marjane in Iran and Vienna, I have had a very personal attachment to the books and now the film. Someone very talented has finally gathered up the courage to tell the world the story of a generation, a very sad story which I don’t necessarily want to relive or to share with strangers but one that is powerful and needs to be retold.

Persepolis is nothing short of inspiring, representing the voice of a generation who for so long has been too busy assimilating, achieving and forgetting.

I could not have imagined a better style or medium with which to tell the story. I could not have imagined a better person to tell the story.

I am so proud of this production, but in particular proud of Marjane for her courage to do this and to represent us so well.

There are going to be a few Oscars waiting for her come February. I guarantee it.

[indian_blues]

Marjane Satrapi, Persepolis (Don't miss it)



Originally published to wide critical acclaim in France, where it elicited comparisons to Art Spiegelman's Maus, Persepolis is Marjane Satrapi's wise, funny, and heartbreaking memoir of growing up in Iran during the Islamic Revolution. In powerful black-and-white comic strip images, Satrapi tells the story of her life in Tehran from ages six to fourteen, years that saw the overthrow of the Shah's regime, the triumph of the Islamic Revolution, and the devastating effects of war with Iraq. The intelligent and outspoken only child of committed Marxists and the great-granddaughter of one of Iran's last emperors, Marjane bears witness to a childhood uniquely entwined with the history of her country.

Persepolis paints an unforgettable portrait of daily life in Iran: of the bewildering contradictions between home life and public life and of the enormous toll repressive regimes exact on the individual spirit. Marjane's child's-eye-view of dethroned emperors, state-sanctioned whippings, and heroes of the revolution allows us to learn as she does the history of this fascinating country and of her own extraordinary family. Intensely personal, profoundly political, and wholly original, Persepolis is at once a story of growing up and a stunning reminder of the human cost of war and political repression. It shows how we carry on, through laughter and tears, in the face of absurdity. And, finally, it introduces us to an irresistible little girl with whom we cannot help but fall in love.

http://rapidshare.com/files/37310999/Satrapi__Persepolis_1__English_.pdf

http://rapidshare.com/files/37311482/Satrapi__Persepolis_2__English_.pdf

[indian_blues]

aww thanks for moving... bit excited. AWESOME really love it.. ultimate piece of art I would say.

[Rasputin]

Due for 27th of December, the French DVD of Persepolis should satisfy all those who are interested in Marjane Satrapi’s movie and artwork. Presented in its initial format 1.85 (16/9 compatible 4/3) the digital rendering should reinforce the black & White contrast that was also an artistic requirement. The sound is rendered in Dolby Digital 5.1 and stereo.

Bonus features include : A 34 minutes making of documentary « Behind the scenes of Persepolis » and « The animation of film » as well as behind the scene interviews of the technical crew and directors as well as the official trailers.

The DVD will be available on amazon for 19,99 euros.

[Rasputin]

Persepolis
Marjane Satrapi and Vincent Paronnaud


ACADEMY AWARDS HISTORY
These are the first Academy Award nominations for Marjane Satrapi and Vincent Paronnaud.

FILM SYNOPSIS
For young Marjane and her family, the overthrow of the Shah of Iran at first seems to be the longed-for beginning of a free and democratic future for their country. With the election of a conservative Islamic government, however, the little girl finds her life changed dramatically as increasing political repression and the restriction of women's freedom lead her parents to the decision to send Marjane to Austria to complete her education.

http://www.oscar.com/nominees/?pn=detail&nominee=Persepolis%20-%20Animated%20Feature%20Film%20Nominee

[Rasputin]

With the confirmation of France’s Presence at the Upcoming Oscars® with two categories Best Actress for La Môme’s (La Vie En Rose) Star Marillon Cotillard and for Best Animation with Marjane Satrapi & Vincent Parronaud’s Persepolis the rivalry between the two French contenders has happily ended in the Oscar® Race. Although they do remain competitors in the upcoming French Oscars to be held prior to the Oscars® with 11 nominations for La Vie En Rose and 6 for Persepolis there seems to be a much more adequate categorization in the nominations for two excellent films and great performances/achievements in their own right. Both films have also received numerous critical acclaim world wide but the tough Oscar Ceremonies looming closely ahead it is all the more comforting to read accolades from fellow film critics particularly when they are as influential and respected as US critics Leonard Maltin and Wade Major.






Each have been supporting their favorite film and their representatives (directors Satrapi and Parronaud for Persepolis and Marillon Cotillard for La Môme) both of which were awarded last year at the prestigious LA Critics Awards last December.



Here are respectively Leonard Matlin’s support for Persepolis and Wade Major for La Môme.

[Rasputin]

TEHRAN (AFP) - Iran this week held rare screenings to small but fascinated audiences of the Oscar-nominated film "Persepolis," which has annoyed the authorities for its critical portrayal of the Islamic revolution.

Around 70 people crammed into a small hall in a Tehran cultural centre on Thursday to watch the animated film in a rare chance for Iranians to see the film legally and in public, AFP correspondents witnessed.

A similar screening of the film, which graphically shows its young heroine's brushes with the authorities in the early days of the Islamic revolution in the 1980s, also took place at the Rasaneh Cultural Centre in Tehran on Tuesday.

"The aim of this screening is to end the delusions surrounding the film which have been created by the media," said the centre's public relations chief, Mahmoud Babareza.

"When a film is not shown people make all sorts of misconceptions. Cinema is cinema, after all, and it should not be put into a limited political context," he told AFP.

Already a major success in the United States and France, "Persepolis" has been condemned by President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's government as "Islamophobic" and "anti-Iranian," and is unlikely to be shown at mainstream cinemas here.

But laughter filled the hall as the audience followed the defiance of the heroine Marjane as she pursued her interest in heavy rock music, Western clothes and boys despite the attentions of the morality police.

The film shown, a DVD copy with Farsi subtitles, was censored of half a dozen scenes mainly of a sexual nature before being deemed acceptable, but the screening took place with the full permission of the cultural authorities.

"I liked it very much. It was very professionally made and very successful in putting across its message that Iran was a closed society at that time," said Zahra Jahani, 20, an architecture student.

"The film is extremely good and very well made," said Mehdi Ghamaie, 21, an accounting student. "It might be anti-government but it is certainly not anti-Iranian."

Not all the audience was so enthusiastic. "It was a secular story and very well told from that point of view. But you cannot agree with everything that she says," said Mohsen Sahaf, 27.

"Persepolis," which jointly won the Jury Prize at Cannes and has been nominated for an Oscar for best animated film, is based on best-selling comic strips by Iranian-French emigre Marjane Satrapi.

The film, co-directed by Satrapi, shows repression under the shah but also portrays the social crackdown, arrests and executions that followed the Islamic revolution led by Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini in 1979.

The heroine's rebellious nature and run-ins with the authorities force her to leave Iran temporarily for Austria and then for France -- this time never to return.

Leading Iranian film critic Hossein Moazzezinia, in a public debate after the screening, praised the film's technical qualities and script but complained that it had not told the whole story.

"Satrapi was selective in presenting her narrative. She omitted certain facts, which at times makes her film unreliable and dishonest," he said.

"You cannot overlook the fact that the people appeared in their millions in support of the imam (Khomeini). It is not true that a minority hijacked the revolution," he said.

The cultural centre where the film was shown is one of a dozen such places run by the capital's municipality.

These centres were promoted by moderate former mayor Gholam Hossein Karbaschi, and the number of film screenings and book readings reached a peak a decade ago but has dwindled somewhat since.

Nevertheless, screening such a sensitive film as "Persepolis" shows that they remain one of the most active forums for discussion in the Iranian capital.

Some Iranians have already seen the film at home on bootlegged DVDs, which are discreetly but readily available in the capital for around two dollars despite being strictly forbidden.

"Persepolis" was not the only film released last year to arouse accusations of being anti-Iranian.

The US blockbuster "300" about the Greco-Persian wars which caricatured the ancient Persians as bloodthirsty sadists was denounced by both the government and webloggers alike.

[Rasputin]

Marjane Satrapi & Vincent Parronaud's Persepolis Enters French Film History with two Awards at French Oscars known as Les Césars Du Cinéma before Final Oscar Run !



Watch Satrapi and Parronaud accept First Best Film Award



YouTube - persepolis aux "Cesar"

[iraniandudeee]

Perspolis The French Movie (MY review)

This movie is brilliant and Amazing, I suggest all Iranians to go watch this movie... the story is true and its based on this girl (who's family is a communist), After the 1979 revolution and the Iraq war she gets sent to France then the story even gets deeper.

If you pay close attention, you will find out about how the 1979 revolution was not necessary (even tho they don't say this)
Even tho its Anime its not for kids, it has a very mature story line.
I think they just made it into Anime because they couldn't afford anything else.

(I give it a 9/10) the best movie of this year by far!

YouTube - Persepolis US trailer 2

[jjbb]

wrong thread see chit chat please

[Rasputin]

[Rasputin]

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/07/04/opinion/04iht-edsatrapi.html?_r=3&ref=global