Shatara Michelle Ford’s award-winning feature debut has found a home. A press release announced that Kino Lorber acquired North American rights to “Test Pattern,” described as “part psychological horror, part realist drama set against the backdrop of national discussions around inequitable health care and policing, the #metoo movement, and race in America.” Ford penned the timely pic and is among its producers.
“Test Pattern” follows “an interracial couple whose relationship is put to the test after a Black woman is sexually assaulted and her white boyfriend drives her from hospital to hospital in search of a rape kit. The film analyzes the effects of the systemic factors and social conditioning women face when navigating sex and consent within the American patriarchy, along with exploring institutional racism from a Black female point of view,” according to its official synopsis.
The feature, which has won honors at BlackStar Film Festival and New Orleans Film Festival, had a woman at the head of every department. Its production crew included more than 60 percent BIPOC, and more than 40 percent of “Test Pattern’s” cast and crew self-identify as LGBTQIA.
“Making ‘Test Pattern’ with defiance was a transformative, radical act and I am pleased it has found its rightful home at Kino Lorber,” said Ford. “It is a pleasure to be in partnership with their team as we bring this film to the public and formally enter the wider conversation about oppressive whiteness, power, and America’s systemic failure of Black women during an incredibly timely and unprecedented moment.”
Kino Lorber SVP Wendy Lidell added, “We are living in a remarkable moment when social movements on multiple fronts are coalescing and a new generation is finding its voice. Like the equally timely ‘I May Destroy You’ on HBO, ‘Test Pattern’ is a cri du coeur from a young Black woman examining whiteness and sexual consent. We should all listen. We at Kino Lorber are proud to amplify Shatara Michelle Ford’s voice.”
“Test Pattern” is slated for an early 2021 release. Brittany S. Hall, Will Brill, Gail Bean, and Drew Fuller star.
