Menopause is a taboo topic that has a huge effect on the lives of half of humanity. One billion women worldwide are in perimenopause or menopause right now, many of whom experience symptoms that can cause distress and have disastrous effects on their jobs, families, sense of self, and life span.
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There are many unanswered questions about the basic biology of menopause and menopause symptoms, as well as the risks and side effects of common menopause treatments. Like many other aspects of women’s health, menopause research is dramatically underfunded - at less than one dollar to every ten dollars - compared to conditions primarily or exclusively affecting men. And there is a dearth of treatment options, particularly for uninsured women and women living in the global south.
In many parts of the world, including the USA, most medical students and gynecologists receive no training or education in menopause. Many physicians are ill-equipped to address the needs of their women patients over 40. The situation is also dire for one out of three American women who experience ‘surgical’ menopause at even earlier ages because of the removal of their ovaries or uterus, and may have particularly disruptive symptoms, the management of which can have long term effects on their health since earlier menopause is associated with decreasing bone and cardiovascular health.
Our film explores how menopause is a culturally mediated phenomenon while also highlighting critical areas in need of research as well as additional treatment options, including hormonal and non-hormonal pharmaceutical options, while also expanding scalable interventions for the vast majority of women for whom hormone therapy is not accessible.
Our film shares stories of women going through all stages of menopause while delving into the latest evidence-based research, identifying challenges we share as well as important differences in our experiences, with the goal of empowerment through knowledge and re-envisioning menopause as a celebratory era of sisterhood, freedom, and expanded possibilities.
THE CREW
Sarah Schenck
DIRECTOR / PRODUCER
Sarah’s mission in life is to enhance our scientific literacy, especially about our bodies, through informative and entertaining films. She most recently co-directed and produced The Invisible Extinction, about the critical role of microbes in human health, which premiered at CPH:DOX to sold-out audiences, was shown in international festivals across the globe, and opened theatrically in New York City and Los Angeles. Celebrated by The Philadelphia Inquirer as a “must-see film,” The Invisible Extinction attracted accolades around the world in publications ranging from People Magazine to the renowned medical journal, The Lancet.
Sarah was producer/director and on-air correspondent for the PBS weekly news program Need To Know, on the acclaimed episode “Saving Carla,” which focused on childhood obesity in the Bronx. For Parent Earth, a website she co-founded in 2009 to increase access to healthy food nationwide, she wrote, directed, and produced hundreds of original videos in English and Spanish. She also makes video content for nonprofits including Amnesty International, the Park Slope Food Coop, the NYC public schools, and the Supportive Housing Network of NY, where she served many years as Chief Digital Officer. Sarah, on her first narrative film, was nominated for an Independent Spirit Award for Best Feature Film Under $500,000 for producing “Virgin,” starring Elisabeth Moss and Robin Wright.
She honed her skills as a journalist with her past work for The New York Times in Rio and as the Senior Policy Advisor for Education in the NYC Comptroller’s Office, where she was honored with an award for Excellence in Public Service.
Mai Iskander
CINEMATOGRAPHER
Mai Iskander brings an authentic, positive, inclusive voice to the stories she directs, particularly those about women and people of color. Her heartfelt, cinematic worldview immerses audiences in important social and cultural narratives. Early in Mai’s career as a cinematographer, she and Sarah collaborated on a short film titled Dog.
Mai’s feature documentary, Garbage Dreams, garnered 26 international awards, as well as a DGA Best Documentary nomination, and was shortlisted for the Academy Award for Best Documentary. Her documentary, Words of Witness, funded by the MacArthur Foundation and the Sundance Institute, premiered at the Berlinale and the Los Angeles Film Festival.
Mai’s cinematography has what the Los Angeles Times calls a “you-are-there vitality,” and has been profiled in ARRI’s centennial website and companion book 100 Years of Arri. Her innate empathetic approach and visual signature led to a successful foray into commercial direction for clients that include Apple, Liberty Mutual, Kate Spade, and Whirlpool. Mai’s “Care Counts” campaign for Whirlpool was awarded the Grand Prix, a Gold Lion, and two Bronze Lions at the Cannes Festival. The campaign also won the AICP Next Cause Marketing award, a D&AD Impact Awards White Pencil, a Gold and Silver Pencil at the One Show, and two Silver Effies.
Mai credits her unique, multidimensional worldview to her upbringing by her Czech mother and Egyptian father. Finding common ground between those diverse cultural influences, amid her background in the United States, informs who she is as both a woman and a filmmaker. A graduate of NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts, Mai began her career in features and TV as a camera assistant to famed directors Alfonso Cuarón, Penny Marshall, Carl Franklin, and Barry Sonnenfeld, among others.
Russell Greene
EDITOR
Russell Greene’s more than 20 edited films have appeared in top US and international festivals including Sundance, Venice, Telluride, New York, SXSW, Toronto, Tribeca, IDFA, and Full Frame, aired on national television (HBO, PBS, Netflix, Hulu, CNN) and screened in theaters worldwide. Sarah and Russell worked together on The Invisible Extinction.
The average rottentomatoes.com score for his films as lead editor is 96%. His past collaborators include Academy Award-winning director/producers Blair Foster and Fisher Stevens, and Academy Award-nominated directors Sam Pollard, Kim Snyder, Amy Berg, Garret Bradley, Zach Heinzerling and Nina Rosenblum. Other collaborators include Lonny Price, Catherine Gund, Steven Lawrence, Anne Makepeace, Jim Solomon, Sophie Huber, and Sarah Schenck.
Feature film credits as Editor include: The Witness (Also as Writer; Emmy and Critics’ Choice Award nominee; Academy Award Shortlist), The Automat (Also as Producer; Four Critics’ Choice Awards Nominations), Max Roach: The Drum Also Waltzes, (Best Music Film, 2024 International Documentary Association), Blue Note Records: Beyond The Notes (Two IDFA nominations), South To Black Power (HBO Films), Take Your Pills 2 (Netflix Films), Harold Prince: The Director’s Life (PBS Great Performances), Harry Dean Stanton: Partly Fiction (Cinema Eye Honors Nominee for Best Film), Tribal Justice (American Film Award, Best Documentary), And We Go Green, Famous Nathan, The Invisible Extinction (Also as Producer), Ordinary Miracles: The Photo League’s New York, A Fine Line and Forever Endeavor (2024 Release).
Timea Dancs
GRAPHIC DESIGNER
With over 15 years of experience in the creative field, Timea specializes in assisting organizations in bringing their mission and offerings to life via conceptually creative brand experiences across multichannel marketing communications and international borders. Timea’s most recent collaboration with Sarah was on graphic design for The Invisible Extinction. What drives her passion even further is when the outcome of her services is mindful of the well-being of people and the beauty of our planet. For additional details, please visit her website.