Film Based on Unfinished Lorca Work to Compete for Palme d'Or
Javier Ambrossi and Javier Calvo, the Spanish creative duo known as Los Javis and lauded for the series Veneno, are bringing their long-gestating film project to the world stage. Their new feature, La Bola Negra (The Black Ball), is scheduled to premiere in the main competition at the 79th Cannes Film Festival in May 2026, where it will contend for both the Palme d'Or and the Queer Palm.
The film is an ambitious undertaking, drawing its primary inspiration from a four-page fragment left behind by the celebrated Spanish poet and playwright Federico García Lorca. Before his murder by Nationalist forces in 1936, Lorca had begun work on what was intended to be the first novel in Spanish history with an openly gay protagonist. The title, 'the black ball', is an allusion to the method used to reject a young gay man from a social club in Granada—a stark metaphor for social exclusion that still resonates today.
Resurrecting a Piece of Queer History
After nearly a decade in development, Los Javis have expanded upon Lorca's fragment to explore what it meant to be queer across three different historical moments. The screenplay, co-written with Alberto Conejero, is not a direct adaptation but an expansion of the themes Lorca introduced. The project also draws from Conejero's award-winning play, La piedra oscura, which itself delves into the final days of one of Lorca's lovers after the writer's death.
The directors have remained tight-lipped on whether García Lorca himself will appear as a character, preferring to keep the focus on the spirit of his unfinished work.
A High-Profile Cast and Production
The film has attracted a significant international and Spanish cast. Academy Award winners Penélope Cruz and Glenn Close are attached to the project, joined by a strong ensemble that includes Miguel Bernardeau (Élite), Lola Dueñas, Antonio de la Torre, and Natalia de Molina. The film will also mark the acting debut of Spanish musician Guitarricadelafuente.
The production is a collaboration between several major Spanish film companies, including Movistar Plus+ and El Deseo, the production house founded by Pedro and Agustín Almodóvar, signaling a high level of industry support for the project.
According to reports in the Spanish newspaper El País, the directors, who were in a long-term domestic partnership, ended their personal relationship during the film's production. However, sources close to the pair confirmed that their professional collaboration remains strong and will continue on both La Bola Negra and future projects.
