Los Javis’ La Bola Negra Wins Cannes, Heads to Oscars — SkimNews
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- Los Javis directed La Bola Negra, a multi-era queer epic interweaving 1930s Spain with a 2017 storyline tied to an unfinished Federico García Lorca manuscript.
- Los Javis won the best director prize at Cannes jointly with Paweł Pawlikowski, cementing the film’s status as an early Oscars frontrunner for best picture and best director.
- La Bola Negra will remain in US theaters for 47 days before streaming on Netflix, a longer theatrical window than even Martin Scorsese has received from the platform.
- Ambrossi and Calvo cast openly gay actors in gay roles, including singer Guitarricadelafuente in his screen debut, emphasizing authenticity in queer storytelling.
- Ambrossi revealed that personal shame around desire delayed their focus on gay male narratives, calling La Bola Negra a breakthrough in confronting generational queer rejection symbolized by the 'black ball' voting system.
- Pedro Almodóvar’s production company El Deseo co-produced the film, and Almodóvar advised Ambrossi to 'start' addressing desire directly in his work.
Why it matters: Los Javis have redefined queer cinema by scaling it to epic proportions, challenging industry norms through casting and distribution. The 47-day theatrical run before Netflix streaming gives the film rare cultural visibility, altering how LGBTQ+ stories can be positioned in mainstream cinema.
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