# Spain picks 'La Bola Negra' for Oscars race

> The Cannes breakout about three generations of queer men will represent Spain at the Academy Awards.
- Title: Spain picks 'La Bola Negra' for Oscars race | Shortify
- Summary: The Cannes breakout about three generations of queer men will represent Spain at the Academy Awards. Spain selected 'La Bola Negra,' a multi-generational…
- Keywords: la bola negra, spain, oscars, best international feature film, javier calvo, javier ambrossi, los javis, cannes, netflix, queer cinema, paweł pawlikowski, picks
- Source: The Hollywood Reporter — https://hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-news/oscars-spain-la-bola-negra-best-international-feature-film-1236703314
- Author: Lily Ford
- Published: 2026-09-16T09:27:57+00:00
- Read time: 1 min
- Topics: la bola negra, spain, oscars, best international feature film, javier calvo, javier ambrossi, los javis, cannes, netflix, queer cinema, paweł pawlikowski
## Spain's Oscar pick announced
La Bola Negra (The Black Ball) will represent Spain in the best international feature film category at the Academy Awards.
## Three generations of queer men
The film tells the story of three generations of queer men whose lives are connected through love and loss.
## Los Javis behind the camera
Filmmakers Javier Calvo and Javier Ambrossi, known as Los Javis, wrote, directed and produced the film with Alberto Conejero.
## Cannes world premiere success
The film premiered at Cannes on May 21 and immediately sparked a competitive bidding war among distributors.
## Best director prize at Cannes
Los Javis won the festival's best director award for the film, sharing the honor with Paweł Pawlikowski for Fatherland.
## Key takeaway

Spain selected 'La Bola Negra,' a multi-generational queer love story by Los Javis that won best director at Cannes, as its Oscar submission.