The mystery has been cleared up: The Black Ball will be the film that represents Spain at the 99th edition of the Oscars, to be held on March 14 at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences of Spain has opted for the second feature film by The Javis, ahead of the other two shortlisted, El ser querido, by Rodrigo Sorogoyen, and Los Domingos, by Alauda Ruíz de Azua.
The film, which won at the Cannes Festival the Best Director Award, in a tie with Polish Pawel Pawlikowski, director of the film Fatherland, will hit cinemas on September 25, amid enormous anticipation. Coincidentally, the last film to win that award at the French festival, All About My Mother, won the Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film in the year 200, in addition to the Golden Globe for Best Foreign Language Film that same year.
With a budget of almost ten million euros, The Black Ball stars Guitarricadelafuente, in his acting debut, alongside Miguel Bernardeau, Carlos González and Lola Dueñas, and features Penélope Cruz and the American actress, Glenn Close.
Legacy, Silences and Memory
Set in three different time periods, The Black Ball pays homage to the Granada-born poet Federico García Lorca while delving into some of the constants that mark the audiovisual creations of Javier Ambrossi and Javier Calvo: identity, family, faith, or redemption. And to achieve this they weave a captivating story in which past and present unite to speak about the importance of legacy, the silences that cross generations, and historical memory.
Milo Quifes as Carlos in an image from The Black Ball, the film chosen to represent Spain at the Oscars.
In 1932, Carlos (Milo Quifes) submits to the scrutiny of the board that decides who may become a member of Granada’s casino, a ceremony in which members express their vote through a white ball if affirmative, or a black ball if negative. Five years later, Sebastián (Guitarricadelafuente) is a young man who, after seeing his town razed by Italian soldiers, flees and in his flight is forced to join the Nationalist side. His main obligation will be to supervise Rafael (Miguel Bernardeau), an officer of the enemy side wounded in combat, who remains convalescent in the hospital.
In the most current timeline, set in 2017, Alberto (Carlos González) is a writer who has abandoned fiction to devote himself to research. One day, unexpectedly, he receives a call saying that his grandfather, whom he did not know, has left him something in inheritance. The news will have an unexpected influence on his future, but also on everything he believed about his family and roots.
A Spanish Film with International Reach
After its screening at the Toronto International Film Festival yesterday, where it earned a long standing ovation from the audience, The Black Ball will reach Spanish cinemas on September 25. A week later it will open in the United States, a prerequisite for being part of the Oscar-nominated films. While Movistar Plus will be the platform in Spain to show it after its theatrical run, in the United States and Canada Netflix will include it in its catalog, starting December 2.
Guitarricadelafuente in an image from Los Javis’ film, The Black Ball.
This window of exhibition, the time elapsed between its cinema release and its arrival on the platform, is the longest in Netflix’s catalog for a film, a clear sign of the significance the feature has gained since its Cannes premiere and of the potential it has in the international awards season. And although it still has to face the judgment of the Academy members who award the Oscars through preselection, many place the Los Javis film among the titles that could contend for awards in general categories, such as Best Picture or Best Actor or Best Original Song, the latter two led by Guitarricadelafuente.
December will be crucial for The Black Ball’s international ambitions. On December 7, the Golden Globes nominations will be announced, which will take place on January 10 at the Beverly Hilton Hotel in Los Angeles. Meanwhile, the preselection of the fifteen films vying for the Best International Feature Oscar will be announced on December 15, while January 21 will announce the list of the five films selected for the ceremony to be held on March 14.
