seidelman made her feature-film debut with "smithereens" (1982), a bleak and darkly humorous look at new york city's downtown bohemian scene of the 1980s. it was shot on 16mm for $40,000 on location, at times "guerrilla style" on the streets and in the subways of new york. "smithereens" captured the look of the post-punk music scene and was the first american independent film to be selected for competition at the cannes film festival. with recognition from cannes, seidelman became a member of the first wave of 80s-era independent filmmakers in the american cinema.