Staff

Rebecca Madding
Executive Director

Rebecca Madding has been the Executive Director of Maiden Alley Cinema since 2020. Prior to her position, she has been a faithful volunteer for MAC since 2014 and served as Secretary on MAC's Board of Directors from 2017-2020. Along with her position of Executive Director of MAC, she is also the producer of the Paducah 48 Hour Film Project and Festival Director of the Rivers Edge International Film Festival. 

Rebecca is a native of Aberdeen, Ohio, moving to western Kentucky in 2011 to attend Murray State University, where she earned an undergraduate degree in English Literature and Professional Writing and a graduate degree in Communications/Public Relations. She now resides in Paducah with her husband, Austin and dachsund, Linus. 

True to her literature roots, Rebecca has a love for stories. Whether it is on the page, the screen, or through conversation, she is a dedicated advocate for sharing and exploring the experiences of others. 

 

 

 

John Holt
Director of Operations

John William Holt is Technical Director for The River's Edge International Film Festival and Operations Director at Maiden Alley Cinema. John was born in Paducah KY and educated at Murray State University. After getting his hands on a camera in 2002 he started making short films full time. He has won several awards and completed his first feature film The Dooms Chapel Horror in 2015 along with being co-founder at the production company Red Band Films.

 

 

 

 


 

Micah Holland
Staff Member

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Libby Bridges
Staff Member

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Board of Directors

Ross Smith
Board Chair

Ross was born and raised in Paducah where his love for cinema was cultivated, which usually involved watching a horror movie he was entirely too young to be watching. He has always been enthralled by stories and how the process of storytelling helps enhance peoples’ lives. 

When not working as a real estate paralegal at Flint & Cooper, Ross enjoys spending his time at Maiden Alley Cinema watching movies, playing disc golf, collecting and reading books, having a brew at Dry Ground, and spending time with friends and family.

“Art is the closest we can come to understanding how a stranger really feels.” – Roger Ebert

 

 

 

Liz Hammonds
Vice Chair


Liz is a native Kentuckian, having grown up and attended college in Murray. Throughout her adolescent years, she often traveled to Maiden Alley Cinema for a taste of "the big city." Once she even went on a date there. (Was it a date? His parents were there and it was middle school. Let's call it a date.) Maiden Alley and Downtown Paducah have long felt like home to Liz, an artsy kid with a penchant for poetry and choral music.

While not watching movies in a romantic alley and eating her favorite food (popcorn), Liz enjoys singing with The Paducah Singers and spending time with her husband and two dog children.

"Your innermost urges will tell you what strategy to employ to accomplish your special purpose while doing the work you enjoy." -Carrie Fisher

 


 

Molly Thompson
Secretary

Molly is a Paducah native and grew up in a household with a deep appreciation for the area’s non-profits and arts entities. She has many fond memories of visiting Maiden Alley Cinema and even flexed her filmmaking prowess through a 48 Hour Film Project back in her middle school years. She stopped while she was ahead. Today, she sticks to the audience and volunteer side of operations for MAC.

Outside of her role as the Paducah Chamber’s Member Services Director, you can find Molly working on her swing at the golf course or spending time with her loved ones (including Jeb the Standard Poodle, her pride & joy) at a local watering hole.

 

 

 

Levi McDuffee
Board Member

Born and raised in Metropolis, Levi has been a movie lover from the beginning. His family were true video store regulars, back when that was a thing. Levi is now a co-owner of Etcetera Coffeehouse and active downtown participant. Over the last ten years, he has fallen in love with the community that Paducah is and represents and tries to garner those kinds of strong relationships in his little corner. Hence, the natural next step of joining the board of Maiden Alley Cinema. He has a passion for “connecting the dots” between folks and believes film offers such a fantastic opportunity to do that. You can catch him or his wife, Ashley Anderson (of The Johnson Bar or Beautiful Paducah fame), out in downtown whether it be enjoying (or usually working) events, live music, or watching something fantastic at Maiden Alley Cinema. 

 

 

Canyon Bowden
Board Member

Canyon and her husband moved to Paducah from Seattle with their three children, in the fall of 2020 to be near her twin and her family. In another life before children, she worked as a Greensperson and a Set Dresser for many years in the Art Departments of various television shows and movies. Canyon finished her bachelor's degree, with a focus on sculpture, after her first child was born. As more of her children have aged into school she begn to revive her art practice. Canyon's work fluctuates between fiber, sculpture, printmaking, and installation. Being a part of Maiden Alley has helped her weave herself into the artistic community of Paducah. She loves film and is so happy we have this wonderful theater.

 

 

 

 

 

William "Rusty" Jones
Board Member

Dr. Rusty Jones is a Professor of English and the Chair of the English and Philosophy Department at Murray State University. Dr. Jones also chairs the annual Murray Shakespeare Festival. Originally from Arizona and the Central Coast of California, Dr. Jones came to Murray in 2008 with his wife Lis, a nurse at the Anna Mae Owen Hospice House, and their two children, Brynn and Patrick. Not long after moving to the region, Dr. Jones became a huge fan of Maiden Alley Cinema, and looks forward to helping support this invaluable Paducah institution for many years to come. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Britton Shurley
Board Member

Britton Shurley is a Professor of English at West Kentucky Community & Technical College where he also serves as Dean of the Humanities, Fine Arts, Business, and Social Science Division. He grew up in Paducah and moved away after high school, only to return about a decade later. 

He and his wife, Amelia, both love seeing films at Maiden Alley—as do their two daughters, who also swear it makes the best popcorn in town. 

 

 

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