Teona Mitevska Reveals Sequel to 'God Exists, Her Name is Petrunya' at Sarajevo Film Festival
North Macedonian filmmaker Teona Mitevska is preparing a sequel to her satirical drama God Exists, Her Name is Petrunya, which she revealed at the Sarajevo Film Festival on 18 August 2026 (Variety).
The new film is titled Petra Doesn't Want to Die (Anatomy of Masculinity), written by Mitevska and Elma Tataragić. Mitevska described it as "a continuation, a reinterpretation, or a counterpoint to" its predecessor (Variety).
The original film, which premiered in competition at the Berlinale in 2019 and won the Ecumenical Jury prize, followed a frustrated thirtysomething woman named Petrunya, played by Zorica Nusheva, in the Macedonian town of Štip. Petrunya faces misogynistic backlash after joining an annual Orthodox ceremony traditionally reserved for men (Variety).
The sequel shifts the lens. Its central character is a rebellious teenage feminist from Belgium, diagnosed with anorexia, bipolar disorder, OCD and trichotillomania — a condition involving compulsive hair-pulling. She travels to North Macedonia, where she meets Nenad, a millennial incel living in the provincial town of Makedonska Kamenica. Nenad offers to help her take her own life (Variety).
Mitevska told Variety the seed for the sequel was planted during a promotional Q&A for God Exists in a small German town, when an audience member asked: "Why are these men so angry?" That question, Mitevska said, sparked her curiosity about the manosphere — the online ecosystem of forums and communities centred on male resentment — and led her to the character of Nenad. Nenad is a member of the Legion of Truth, which Mitevska described as a Balkan interpretation of the American MAGA movement (Variety).
What makes the project distinctive is the collision Mitevska is staging. She said the film tells the story of two complete opposites who find common ground in exceptional circumstances, and that through studying masculinity she also examines femininity (Variety).
No production dates, financing structure, or cast beyond the premise have been disclosed. Mitevska's North Macedonian production company, Sisters and Brother Mitevski, has been her regular creative home, though Variety did not confirm it as the production banner for this title.
For the original film, the 2019 Berlinale premiere — one of the major European festival platforms where films compete for the Golden Bear — helped secure international distribution. Whether the sequel follows a similar festival path will depend on when it enters production and which sales agent picks it up. The Sarajevo Film Festival, where Mitevska made the announcement, is itself a regional market hub, drawing buyers and programmers from across the Balkans and beyond.
