LA BOLA NEGRA

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Javier Ambrossi directs. Gris Jordana behind the camera. Raül Refree scores. Alberto Gutiérrez cuts. Produced in Spain, France. Dialogue in Spanish, English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

• 1Clocks in at 155 minutes — on the longer side of feature-length cinema.
• 2Released this year — you're seeing it while it's still in the cultural conversation.
• 3Dialogue crosses 2 languages: Spanish, English.
• 4International production across 2 countries: Spain, France.
• 5Directed by Javier Ambrossi, shot by Gris Jordana. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
• 6Original score by Raül Refree. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
• 7Editor Alberto Gutiérrez shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
• 8Guitarricadelafuente and Miguel Bernardeau and Carlos González carry the top of the cast.
• 9Marketing tagline: "Love leaves a legacy.".
• 10IMDB entry: tt35511966 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
• 11Only 47 TMDB ratings — you're getting ahead of the curve on this one.
• 12Classified under 9 themes, including "spain", "based on novel or book", "spanish civil war (1936-39)", "based on play or musical".

The technical file

Cinematography

Gris Jordana

Original score

Raül Refree

Editing

Alberto Gutiérrez

Production design

Roger Bellés

Makeup / hair

Mariló Osuna

VFX supervisor

Laura Pedro

Stunt coordinator

William Monrabal Cook

Runtime

155 min · 2h 35m

Status

Released

Original language

ES

Certification (US)

R

IMDB

LA BOLA NEGRA (2026) ↗

Also by

Javier Ambrossi

• 
  Veneno

  2020 · ★ 8.4
• 
  La Mesías

  2023 · ★ 7.5
• 
  Paquita Salas

  2016 · ★ 7.1
• 
  La Llamada

  2017 · ★ 6.8
• 
  Más de Veneno: El Documental

  2020 · ★ 5.0
• 
  Paquita Salas

  2016

Trailers & featurettes

Watch the pieces

• 

  ▶
  Official Trailer [Subtitled]

  Trailer · Official
• 

  ▶
  Official Teaser

  Teaser · Official

Production companies

Who made it

• 

  Movistar Plus

  ES

• 

  Le Pacte

  FR

• 

  El Deseo

  ES

• TE

  Telefónica Audiovisual Digital

  ES

• LO

  Los Esquiadores

  ES

Key crew

• EditorAlberto Gutiérrez
• Visual Effects SupervisorLaura Pedro
• Costume DesignerAna López Cobos
• Casting DirectorEva Leira
• Casting DirectorYolanda Serrano
• Production DesignRoger Bellés
• Set DecorationJudit Ferrer
• ProducerJavier Calvo
• ProducerJavier Ambrossi
• ProducerJorge Pezzi
• Executive ProducerPaula Cipriota
• Associate ProducerPedro Almodóvar
• Associate ProducerAgustín Almodóvar
• Associate ProducerGuillermo Farré
• Associate ProducerFran Araújo
• Associate ProducerManuela Ocón
• Associate ProducerEsther García
• Associate ProducerJean Labadie
• Associate ProducerAlice Labadie
• Sound MixerMayte Cabrera
• Sound EditorAlejandro López
• Sound EditorAnna Harrington
• Makeup Department HeadMariló Osuna
• Hair Department HeadPablo Morillas

Themes & keywords

What it's about, really

• spain
• based on novel or book
• spanish civil war (1936-39)
• based on play or musical
• lgbt
• spanish second republic (1931-39)
• 1930s
• 2010s
• gay

Release history · US

When it landed

• Premiere2026-09-17· Reeling - The Chicago LGBTQ+ International Film Festival
• Premiere2026-09-05· Telluride Film Festival
• Premiere2026-10-15· NewFest / San Diego International Film Festival / OUTshine LGBTQ+ Film Festival
• Premiere2026-10-04· Mill Valley Film Festival
• Premiere2026-10-10· Hamptons International Film Festival
• Premiere2026-10-17· Heartland Film Festival / Montclair Film Festival / Philadelphia Film Festival
• Premiere2026-10-07· MSP Cine Latino Film Festival / Bend Film Festival
• Premiere2026-10-18· Newport Beach Film Festival
• Premiere2026-10-23· Twin Cities Film Festival
• Premiere2026-10-14· Orcas Island Film Festival

Also known as

International titles

• Qara TopAZ
• The Black BallUS
• Czarna kulaPL
• A Bola PretaBR
• A Bola PretaPT
• ผิดไหมที่มีหัวใจTH