Editing analysis of the film God Exists, Her Name is Petrunya

Abstract

The pool of authentic representations of women in films is growing and breaking the artistic canon’s depiction of women as either wives, mothers, maids, or mistresses. This text provides a comparative analysis between the 2019 North Macedonian film God Exists, Her Name is Petrunya and the tenth and final draft of its script. Its aim is to uncover, through Karen Pearlman’s cognitive approach to editing, the tools and devices used by Marie-Hélène Dozo to reshape the film’s rhythm. God Exists, Her Name is Petrunya exposes gender patriarchies within the Orthodox Catholic church, the state (police) and, the labour market in the context of North Macedonia and the Balkans. However, it does not manage to subvert or push the envelope of gender hierarchies because its narrative propagates a ‘salvation through romance’ resolution. Moreover, it builds its protagonist on the archetype of a virgin heroine, such as Joan of Arc, whose heroism is directly linked to their innocence.