Dreams in Nightmares Opens Summer Theatrical Run
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- Dreams in Nightmares will open in New York and Los Angeles this summer before expanding nationwide, with Lunette Films handling booking and release strategy.
- Dreams in Nightmares premiered at festivals including BlackStar, Berlin, and the Champs‑Élysées Film Festival in Paris, where it earned a Critic’s Prize.
- Shatara Michelle Ford directs the film, her sophomore feature after the 2019 thriller ‘Test Pattern,’ focusing on a road‑trip narrative about mid‑30s queer friends.
- Denée Benton leads an ensemble that includes Sasha Compère, Charlie Barnett and Jasmin Savoy Brown, delivering humor and emotional depth around chosen family and self‑discovery.
- Malkah Manouel (founder of Lunette) says the distributor’s ‘filmmaker‑first, highly collaborative approach’ aims to create intentional releases that build momentum beyond opening weekend.
- Pin‑Chun Liu and co‑producer Naïma Abed praise Lunette’s strategy for connecting with audiences in a meaningful way and emphasizing community‑centered storytelling.
Why it matters: The summer theatrical rollout in New York and Los Angeles, backed by Lunette’s collaborative, filmmaker‑first distribution model, gives queer audiences and indie creators a high‑profile platform for stories of chosen family, while traditional studio‑driven releases continue to dominate mainstream screens.
