EXCLUSIVE: Spanish distributor Elástica Films has set an October 2026 release for Javier Ambrossi and Javier Calvo’s Cannes smash La Bola Negra and unveiled a first clip.

News of the release date comes just hours after the film’s triumphant Cannes competition premiere, where the feature received a 20-minute ovation in the presence of the directors and cast which includes Penelope Cruz and star singer-songwriter Guitarricadelafuente.

The picture explores LGBT trauma and pays tribute to murdered Spanish poet and playwright Federico García Lorca through the interconnected stories of three men in the three different eras of 1932, 1937 and 2017

The screenplay is inspired by Alberto Conejero’s 2015 play La piedra oscura (Dark Stone) and an unfinished work by poet who was assassinated by Franco’s Nationalists in 1936, in the early days of the Spanish War.

Known collectively as Los Javis, the directors previously made waves with their series La Mesías. Revolving around a traumatized camera assistant whose life is upended by a viral video featuring a Christian pop band of five sisters, it premiered at San Sebastian in 2023.

La Bola Negra is an original Movistar Plus+ film in collaboration with the directors’ Suma Content Films and co-produced with Le Pacte, which also has French distribution rights.

“Over the years, Los Javis have built a remarkable connection with audiences through their exponential creative voice. La Bola Negra represents a bold new step in their career. It’s ambitious, moving, and deeply cinematic,”  said Elástica Films founder Enrique Costa. “We are incredibly proud to accompany the film on its journey to Spanish audiences this October.”

Alice Labadie at Le Pacte said the company had been following the work of Los Javis for some time.

“Reading the screenplay for La Bola Negra felt like discovering something truly unique. They have created a rich and unforgettable cinematic world unlike anything we had encountered before. The finished film exceeded every expectation. It’s emotional, daring, profoundly original and for a very wide audience. It’s a masterpiece,” she said.

International Sales on the film are handled my Goodfellas, which took on the mandate last Cannes when the production was first announced on the fringes of the festival.

“It is rare to encounter filmmakers with such clarity of vision and command of storytelling so early in their international trajectory,” said Goodfellas CEO Vincent Maraval.

“Cannes is the ideal platform to introduce their work to global audiences, and we are thrilled to help bring this extraordinary film to the world stage and building a relationship that we hope will continue to grow well beyond this film.”

Moviestar Plus+ first worked with Calvo and Ambrossi on the La Mesías, releasing the hit show on the platform one month after its San Sebastian launch.

“They are two of the most talented and distinctive creators in contemporary European cinema. Following the original series La Mesías, we wanted to continue supporting a project as ambitious as La Bola Negra, a film that brings together all the elements of Javier Calvo and Javier Ambrossi’s creative universe, this time taken to an epic and deeply moving dimension that we are convinced will resonate with a huge audience,” said Guillermo Farré, Director of Original Films and Spanish Cinema at Movistar Plus.

“We are immensely proud that the first stop on the wonderful journey this film is embarking on is none other than the Official Selection of the Cannes Film Festival.

Watch the directors speak about the film at the Deadline Studio here.