Left to right: Carmen and Lola
In the Roma community of Madrid's suburbs, closeted lesbian Lola is dreading an intended life being a wife and mother which her family will expect from her. She wishes instead to attend a university, and draws street art of birds around the area. Carmen is engaged to Lola's cousin, and when they meet, Lola finds her attractive instantly. At first hostile on learning of what Lola's feelings for her really are, Carmen begins a clandestine relationship with her. They keep this a secret though, knowing it is taboo in the community.Examples:
- Armoured Closet Gay: On realizing that Lola finds her attractive, Carmen angrily calls her a dyke and says that lesbians disgust her. Her initial hostility quickly becomes curiosity though, and before long they're a couple.
- Arranged Marriage: Both the title characters are facing these, as its the custom in the Roma community. However, they have the final word on whether to accept a match or not.
- Bittersweet Ending: After being forcibly outed, Lola gets disowned. She runs off with her lover Carmen though, and it seems they will build a life together elsewhere. The last scene is of them visiting the beach together, like Lola dreamed they would.
- Character Title: It's named after the main duo.
- Cure Your Gays: After he learns Lola is involved with Carmen, her father drags her to church and prays with the pastor to have God "heal" her of the "unnatural sickness" she has. It doesn't work, of course.
- Forbidden Love: The title characters are from a traditional Roma community who follow Evangelical Christianity. Given this, same-sex relationships are taboo, so they keep theirs a secret. Carmen also has a fiancé at the start.
- Forced Out of the Closet: The title characters are outed to their families after Lola's neighbor sees them kissing together, then love letters they exchanged are discovered too.
- Gossipy Hens: After Lola's neighbor Maria finds out she is with Carmen, she quickly spreads the news all over their neighborhood.
- Heteronormative Crusader: In the Roma community around Madrid, homophobia is the norm from what's seen. The title characters are thus treated with deep hostility for having a relationship, and Lola gets disowned for it.
- Holding Hands: The title characters do a lot of this when they're growing closer, which seems to be fairly common among Roma girls so it doesn't by itself tell people the pair are falling in love.
- I Have No Son!: Lola's father angrily declares she's no longer his daughter publicly after learning about her dating Carmen and being a lesbian.
- Intimate Artistry: Carmen lets Lola sketch her nude while they're in bed together, showing just how open she is now that their romantic feelings for each other have grown.
- I Want Grandkids: This is one of Lola's mother's laments after learning she's a lesbian, saying her duty is to bring her parents grandchildren.
- Lipstick Lesbian: Both the title characters are feminine young women, especially Carmen, who both have long hair. They enjoy makeup, fashionable clothing and jewelry. They get into a relationship. However, Carmen seems to be more a lipstick bisexual, since she was already happily engaged with a man at first. Lola on the other hand only shows attraction to women.
- Longing Look: On first seeing Carmen, Lola gives her an intense, lingering look which shows her instant attraction.
- Love Confession: Toward the end of the film the title characters write passionate letters to each other confessing their love.
- Ms. Fanservice: Carmen is very beautiful, tending to wear outfits that show her bare stomach, often have deep necklines and favors shorts while not in a dress.
- Protagonist Title: The title is the names of the film's protagonists.
- Queer Romance: The whole plot centers on the title characters' falling in love and the travails which they face for doing so.
- Secretly Gay Activity: The title characters' relationships starts out appearing like just a very affectionate friendship to other people (which does not seem uncommon for Roma girls), with them spending a ton of time together as they hold hands, while having private kissing sessions while they slowly fall in love.
- Secret Relationship: The title characters carefully pretend they're simply very close, intimate friends as a result of the homophobia in the Roma community.
- Stay in the Kitchen: The Spanish Roma have a very traditional patriarchy where women mostly spend their time raising children and caring for the home. Lola hates this idea (although her being a lesbian also gives her even more reason to reject it). She wants to attend a university, as a budding artist.
- Sweetie Graffiti: Lola, a street artist, spray paints hearts along with Carmen's name on walls around town to show her desire for Carmen. She leaves herself anonymous as the source though, given the homophobia in the Roma community, so people think Carmen's fiancé did it at first.
