Italy Selects ‘The Spiral’ for 2027 International Oscar Race

Italy has selected Paolo Strippoli’s The Spiral, originally titled L’Estranea, as its entry for the international feature film race at the 99th Academy Awards. The choice puts the genre-driven drama into the next stage of the process, but it does not yet make the film an Oscar nominee.

A genre film gets Italy’s backing

The Italian selection committee was created by film industry body ANICA at the request of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. A five-member panel chose Strippoli’s film, praising it as a new work of genre cinema from a young director that has begun drawing attention from audiences and critics in Italy and abroad.

The film stars Jasmine Trinca as a mother drawn into a dangerous bargain and Valeria Bruni Tedeschi as a mysterious figure known as the Stranger. Its story uses the framework of a Faustian pact, giving Italy a darker and more overtly stylized contender than a conventional prestige drama.

Festival momentum before awards season

The Spiral premiered in competition at the 83rd Venice International Film Festival. It later screened at the Toronto International Film Festival under its English title and finished as the first runner-up in the Midnight Madness section, a program known for horror, action and other adventurous genre work.

That festival path gives the campaign an international foundation before Academy voters begin narrowing the field. It also extends a moment of visibility for Strippoli and the ensemble, which includes Bruni Tedeschi, Trinca, Adriano Giannini and Romana Maggiora Vergano.

What happens next

The Academy is scheduled to announce a 15-film international feature shortlist on December 15, 2026. The five nominees are due to be revealed on January 21, 2027, ahead of the ceremony in Los Angeles on March 14.

Italy’s designation therefore marks the beginning of the campaign rather than its conclusion. The Spiral must first secure a place on the shortlist and then advance again to become one of the five nominated films.