Mary Neely

Filmmaker David Shadrack Smith’s feature documentary Public Access charts the chaotic, rebellious, untold story of public access TV in NYC through a wild journey of archival footage. David sits down with LESFF Directors to chat about mining for pornographic tapes, landing fancy EPs like Steve Buscemi and Benny Safdie, and channeling the “make-art-at-all-costs” energy of the public access icons he was putting on screen. Public Access had its New York premiere as LESFF’s 2026 Closing Night film.

Mary Neely, fresh off making her Broadway debut in Death of a Salesman, and serving as a juror at the 2026 festival, joins LESFF Fest Director, Roxy Hunt to talk about writing and starring in her feature film Or Something alongside Kareem Rahma, (from the wildly popular Subway Takes), and how the best PR for your film could involve being in a bikini outside Quad Cinema.

NB Mager talks teenage coming-of-age films (top favs and the joy getting to work with Molly Ringwald!), creative rebellion, and what it actually takes to get an indie film made and how a kind of stubborn, childlike optimism can be the engine that gets a movie across the finish line.

Beg, borrow, steal - festival alums Kelsea Bauman-Murphy and Audrey Arnold chat filming with sunburns in the heat of Florida, their shared history of shoplifting (which spawned their upcoming short “TAMPA”), and their paths to fundraising, including utilizing LESFF as a fiscal sponsor.

Caroline Lindy, Writer/Director of LESFF 2024 Best of Fest Winner YOUR MONSTER, and cast members Tommy Dewey, Kayla Foster, and Edmund Donovan chat about making the genre-bending horror musical romantic comedy that was inspired by true events.

A live taping of “Below the Line,” at LESFF 2024. ‘Sexperts’ from all corners of the industry have brought some of their favorite funny, sexy, and steamy scenes to watch and discuss! Panelists include DeWanda Wise, (She's Gotta Have It), Edy Modica, (Jury Duty), Roger Kumble (Dir. Cruel Intentions), and Amy Northup (Intimacy Coordinator, Stress Positions, Fire Island). Moderated by NY Times writer Gina Cherelus, our panel chats about the role that sex plays in storytelling and dives into how today’s creators are pushing the boundaries and overturning cinematic sex-pectations.

Writer, director and star of the LESFF 2024 Closing Night Film PUDDYSTICKS, Megan Seeley and her co-star Dan Bakkedahl (Veep) talk with hosts Roxy Hunt, Shannon Walker and Josh Greenwood about their dark comedy that explores anxiety through a secret society in suburban Florida.

Filmmakers Sebastian Dinatale and Laura Oberbeck (two of LESFF's Stay Indie Project participants) discuss how their short film Mr. Oberbeck served as a launch pad for their first feature.

Filmmaker Michael Lukk Litwak chats with us about making his indie sci-fi romantic comedy “MOLLI AND MAX IN THE FUTURE,” starring Zosia Mamet and Aristotle Athari - which had its New York Premiere at LESFF 2023

An eight-year cinematic journey, "Great Photo, Lovely Life" chronicles a granddaughter’s attempt to disrupt a cycle of intergenerational trauma through the voices of the survivors and her grandfather himself. Filmmakers, Amanda Mustard and Rachel Beth Anderson sit down with Festival Directors, Roxy Hunt and Shannon Walker