Indie Spirit-Nominated ‘Test Pattern’ Filmmaker Shatara Michelle Ford Has Completed Next Film

Rising acclaimed filmmaker Shatara Michelle Ford has completed their highly anticipated sophomore feature, following their Indie Spirit- and Gothams-nominated debut “Test Pattern.” Ford (who uses they/she/their pronouns) will premiere their “Dreams in Nightmares” as the opening night film at this year’s BlackStar Film Festival on August 1.

Ford’s “Test Pattern,” a standout debut from 2019, also premiered at BlackStar that same year. The film was distributed by Kino Lorber and went on to be nominated for three Gotham Awards, including Best Picture and three Independent Spirit Awards, including Best First Feature. Billed by this writer as a “perceptive look at sexual assault and relationships,” Ford’s film was one of the finest of the year, and spelled the beginning of a very exciting career for the filmmaker.

More from IndieWire

• 'Kinds of Kindness' Went to the Edge of New Orleans for an Anti-'Big Easy' Vibe

• More 'Inside Out 2'-Level Surprises Will Be Needed to Reach an Unlikely $8 Billion Domestic Box Office in 2024

Where as “Test Pattern” was, per today’s official announcement, “a tense thriller exploring the aftermath of a sexual assault that interrogated structural racism of the medical system,” Ford’s “Dreams in Nightmares” sees the filmmaker expanding “their scope to put their singular cinematic stamp on the American road movie. The film follows three black queer femmes in their mid-thirties as they road trip across the Midwestern United States in search of their friend who has seemingly disappeared off the grid.”

The new film stars Denée Benton (“The Gilded Age”), Mars Storm Rucker (“A Strange Loop”), Dezi Bing (“Wig Out!”), and Sasha Compère (“Single Drunk Female”), with a supporting cast that includes Charlie Barnett (“Russian Doll”), Molly Bernard (“Younger”), Alfie Fuller (“The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel”), Jasmin Savoy Brown (“Yellowjackets,””Scream”), Golden Globe Winner Regina Taylor, and Robert Wisdom (“Barry,” “Blackbird”).

“Five years after BlackStar world premiered my first film ‘Test Pattern,’ catapulting my career and the careers of countless others on my team; it only felt fitting to return to the festival that embraced my work from the beginning,” said Ford in an official statement. “Especially since ‘Dreams in Nightmares’ was made most immediately for the BlackStar audience. The fact that Philadelphia is also where I reside, only takes the cake as I’m excited to share my very tender film with my community and celebrate this momentous achievement with my loved ones.”

“It’s hard to imagine a more exciting film for the opening night of the 2024 festival,” added BlackStar Film Festival director Nehad Khader. “Imbued with a sense of radical possibility — ‘Dreams in Nightmares’ is the kind of genre-defying work that our audience has long embraced, reflecting a collective vision of a more liberatory world.”

The film was was produced by Ford, Pin-Chun Liu, Naima Abed of Paradise City, Josh Peters and Robina Riccitiello of Spark Features, Ben Stillman of Birchall Entertainment, Ana Leocha of Tango, Adam Wyatt Tate, Chris Quintos-Cathcart, and Tyler Bagley. Executive producers include Lia Buman and Tim Headington, Jacqueline W. Liu of Each Other Films, Annie Yang of Track Eight Pictures, Yu-Hao Su of Verdant Films, Emily Georges, and Liska Ostojic.

UTA is handling North American sales on the film.

Best of IndieWire

• 'Song of the South': 14 Things to Know About Disney's Most Controversial Movie

• The 55 Best LGBTQ Movies and TV Shows Streaming on Netflix Right Now

• A History of Unsimulated Sex Scenes in 17 Cannes Films, from 'Mektoub' to 'Antichrist' to 'Caligula'

Sign up for Indiewire's Newsletter. For the latest news, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.