Spanish queer epic 'La Bola Negra' takes TIFF's People's Choice Award

“La Bola Negra,” a Spanish queer epic tracing the intertwined lives of three gay men, has won the People's Choice Award at the Toronto International Film Festival, a result that places it firmly among the season's leading Oscar contenders.

The prize, decided by festival audiences, has become one of the most reliable bellwethers for the Academy Awards. Since 2012, nearly every winner has gone on to secure a best-picture nomination. The single exception came in 2024, when Mike Flanagan's Stephen King adaptation “The Life of Chuck” took the award. Last year's winner, “Hamnet,” later collected eight Oscar nominations.

Directed by the duo known as Los Javis — Javier Ambrossi and Javier Calvo — “La Bola Negra” had already drawn attention at the Cannes Film Festival, where it shared the best director honour with Paweł Pawlikowski for “Fatherland.” Netflix picked up the film out of Cannes and has mounted a full awards campaign, alongside the streamer's longest theatrical release to date. It opens in theatres on October 16 and begins streaming on December 2.

In a statement, the directors described the film as deeply personal while carrying a message about the importance of expressing who you are. They said that audiences connecting with it and making it their own was the greatest gift they could receive.

“I Play Rocky,” Peter Farrelly's comedy about the making of “Rocky,” was the first runner-up, followed by “Being Heumann,” Siân Heder's drama about disability rights pioneer Judy Heumann.

In the international category, the People's Choice Award went to “Elsinore,” starring Andrew Scott as Ian Charleson, the Scottish actor who performed “Hamlet” in London while living with AIDS. Lee Chang-dong's Korean drama “Possible Love,” about the trauma of mass layoffs, was first runner-up, with Hur Jin-ho's Korean procedural “The Assassin(s)” second.

“Darlene Love: I Know Where I've Been,” a portrait of the 85-year-old vocalist, won the documentary audience award. The Midnight Madness section's prize went to “Ladies and Gentlemen, Brian Mulroney,” Matthew Rankin's so-called gonzo documentary about the former Canadian prime minister.

The 51st edition of the festival concluded on Sunday.