The first trailer has arrived for Dreams in Nightmares, the sophomore feature from writer-director-producer Shatara Michelle Ford, distributed by Lunette Films. The film opens in New York City on August 21 and Los Angeles on August 28, with a wider national rollout to follow in September.
Tony-nominated Denée Benton leads the cast in a road movie that follows three Black queer femmes in their mid-thirties who set out across the Midwest in search of a friend who has seemingly vanished off the grid. Equal parts tender character study and simmering thriller, the film puts Ford’s singular stamp on the American road movie tradition.
The ensemble cast includes Sasha Compère, Charlie Barnett, Jasmin Savoy Brown, Mars Storm Rucker and Dezi Bing, alongside Molly Bernard, Alfie Fuller, Malek Mouzon, Joss Barton, Regina Taylor and Robert Wisdom. Cinematography is by Ludovica Isidori, with editing by Cyndi Trissel and a score by Lia Ouyang Rusli.
Dreams in Nightmares marks Ford’s follow-up to their celebrated debut Test Pattern, which earned three Gotham Award nominations including Best Picture and three Independent Spirit Award nominations including Best First Feature. The new film made its world premiere as the opening night selection at the BlackStar Film Festival and has since screened at the Berlin International Film Festival, the British Film Institute, NewFest, Frameline and the Champs-Elysees Film Festival.