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 Keuler, Kelly, Hutchins, Blankenship, and Sigler, LLP, 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

 


 

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. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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