After receiving a rapturous reception and a 16-minute standing ovation at Cannes, Javier Ambrossi and Javier Calvo’s “La Bola Negra” (“The Black Ball”) sparked a bidding war among multiple studios for U.S. rights. Bidders include A24, Mubi and Netflix.
Thursday night’s premiere marked the Cannes competition debut for the filmmaking duo collectively known as Los Javis, who have built a cult following internationally with their “Veneno” and “La Messias” series. Their film, The Black Ball, a queer epic spanning 85 years of Spanish history and inspired by the unfinished fragments of Spanish poet and playwright Federico García Lorca, is in contention for both the Palme d’Or and the Queer Palm.
The deal marks the festival’s second major bidding war this year. Another top-selling title was Jordan Firstman’s “Club Kid,” which ended up at A24 in a $17 million acquisition.
A24 is perhaps the most surprising of the three distributors to win this title, as indie darling A24 has not broadly prioritized non-English films, while Mubi is more established in the field and Netflix has a track record of promoting local language films. Neon, which had nine titles submitted to the festival, also has a history of foreign-language films, but it’s unclear whether they made a bid or were simply interested in the title.
“The Black Ball” follows the interconnected lives of three gay men across three eras: 1932, 1937, and 2017, weaving together stories of desire, loss, and what one generation leaves behind for the next. The film’s title alludes to a form of social rejection: a black ball thrown into a ballot box to deny young gay men admission to a club in Granada. Glenn Close appears in a supporting role alongside Gitarica de la Fuente, a beloved Spanish singer-songwriter making his screen debut, and Penelope Cruz makes an extended cameo, along with Miguel Bernardo, Carlos González, Milo Quifes, and Lola Dueñas.
Ambrossi and Calbo co-wrote the screenplay with playwright Alberto Conejero. “The Black Ball” is also the first film produced under Ross Jarvis’ production company’s new cinema division, Suma Content Films. Additional producers include Movistar Plus+, Pedro and Agustín Almodovar’s El Deseo and Le Pacte.
The film will be released theatrically in Spain on October 2 through Elastica Films. Goodfellas will be in charge of overseas sales.
