LA BOLA NEGRA in 35mm

Special Features: Special Presentation | 2027 Oscar® Selection, Spain

Drawing inspiration from an unfinished work by Federico García Lorca, beloved Spanish filmmaking duo Javier Calvo and Javier Ambrossi (known fondly in Spain as Los Javis) craft an expansive, exuberant and visually stunning epic that traces the intertwined histories of political oppression and queer resistance across 20th- and 21st-century Spain. Weaving together three distinct narratives that follow the long shadow of the Spanish Civil War into the present, Calvo and Ambrossi effortlessly fuse elements of historical drama, literary thriller and lyrical fantasy into an era-spanning meta-textual ode to queer lives and the lost stories of Spain’s turbulent political history. In 1932, a closeted young man (Milo Quifes) longs to be accepted into his city’s exclusive casino, only to be blackballed for his sexuality; in 1937, as the Spanish Civil War rages on and fascism takes hold, a reluctant Nationalist solider (musician and first-time actor Guitarricadelafuente) guards a mysterious Republican prisoner (Miguel Bernardeau) as forbidden love blooms; and in 2017, a playwright researching the history of queer culture in Spain (Carlos González) unearths an elusive thread — tied to his own family history — that connects them all. Sweeping in scale, yet intimate in feeling, LA BOLA NEGRA balances its rich tapestry of characters and Russian doll–like structure with lush 35mm cinematography by regular Los Javis collaborator Gris Jordana and standout performances from Quifes, Guitarricadelafuente, Bernardeau and González, alongside Penélope Cruz, Glenn Close and Julio Torres. Winner of the Cannes Best Director award and the Toronto International Film Festival People’s Choice Award, LA BOLA NEGRA stands as both an act of remembrance and a testament to the enduring power of stories left unfinished. –Abbie Algar

DIR/SCR/PROD Javier Ambrossi, Javier Calvo; SCR Alberto Conejero, from the unfinished novel by Federico García Lorca and Conejero’s play “La piedra oscura”; PROD Jorge Pezzi. Spain/France, 2026, color, 155 min. In Spanish with English subtitles. RATED R

Run Time: 155 Minutes

Opening Date: Saturday, December 05, 2026

Genre: Drama

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