Filmmaker Jess Varley was born and raised in Brooklyn, NY. Her upcoming film The Astronaut, produced by Brad Fuller, stars Laurence Fishburne and Kate Mara. The New York Times highlighted Varley's previous writing and directing work on the horror anthology Phobias as standout, including her ability to transform Macy Gray into "the horror movie queen you didn't know you wanted." Moviefone also included Jess on their list of top 20 female genre directors.