Spain's film academy has selected La bola negra, the second feature from the directing duo Javier Calvo and Javier Ambrossi, known as Los Javis, to represent the country in the best international feature category at the 2027 Academy Awards. The announcement, made this week in Madrid, puts the film ahead of two other strong contenders: El ser querido by Rodrigo Sorogoyen and Los domingos by Alauda Ruíz de Azúa.
Set against the backdrop of the Spanish Civil War, La bola negra weaves together three intertwined stories about queer desire and repression, with a narrative closely tied to the figure of Federico García Lorca. The film has already earned significant international recognition, including the Best Director prize at the Cannes Film Festival, where it also competed for the Palme d'Or. Its screening at the Toronto International Film Festival has drawn positive reactions from critics and audiences alike, a promising sign for its chances in the US awards season.
A long road to the Dolby Theatre
The final Oscar nominations will be announced on 15 December, and the ceremony is scheduled for 14 March 2027. Los Javis have been on an extended promotional tour for months, and a nomination would cap a remarkable journey for a duo that began in theatre and television. Their debut film, La llamada, was followed by acclaimed TV series such as Paquita Salas, Veneno, and La Mesías.
The cast of La bola negra includes Penélope Cruz as cabaret performer Nené Romero, a role that analysts believe could earn her a best supporting actress nomination. The ensemble also features singer-songwriter Álvaro Lafuente (known as Guitarricadelafuente), Miguel Bernardeau, Carlos González, Milo Quifes, and Lola Dueñas, with a brief appearance by Glenn Close as a historian who travels to present-day Madrid.
Spain has won the Oscar for best international feature only four times, most recently with Alejandro Amenábar's Mar adentro in 2005. The selection of La bola negra reflects the academy's confidence in a film that has already demonstrated its appeal on the international festival circuit.
The competition for the nomination is fierce. El ser querido, directed by Rodrigo Sorogoyen, tells the story of an absent director (played by Javier Bardem) and his daughter (Victoria Luengo), and had been seen as a strong candidate. Los domingos, by Alauda Ruíz de Azúa, was one of the most awarded Spanish films of the past season but did not make the 2025 preselection. Among the potential rivals for the final nomination is the Romanian film Fjord, which won the Palme d'Or at Cannes for its portrait of an ultra-religious marriage, starring Renate Reinsve and Sebastian Stan, and exploring contradictions in progressive Norwegian society.
For Los Javis, the selection is a milestone in a career that has consistently pushed boundaries in Spanish pop culture. Their work often blends humour, emotion, and social commentary, and La bola negra appears to be their most ambitious project yet. As the awards season unfolds, all eyes will be on whether the film can secure a place among the five nominees and, ultimately, bring home Spain's first Oscar in over two decades.
