Remarkable Oxonian and creator of “Endo What?,” Shannon Cohn, has lived from coast to coast, but nothing hits closer to home than the battle to educate women about endometriosis.
Shannon Cohn (Photo courtesy: www.endowhat.com)
A Ripley native, Cohn grew up in North Mississippi and studied international business as an undergraduate at Mississippi State University because of her curiosity about the world and hoped her major would get her “out into it.” After graduating, she was accepted to Vanderbilt Law School but “spontaneously decided to defer for a year” and went to New York instead, interning at Late Night with Conan O’Brien and Sony Pictures because of her interest in the entertainment industry. She struggled to decide between staying in New York and doing what she considered the practical thing – attending law school – and she eventually returned to Vanderbilt for law school.
“I loved law school and Vanderbilt, but I did not like being a lawyer,” she said. “I practiced international law at the biggest firm in Atlanta, and the job was pretty fancy. However, as I sat at my desk each day, I felt my life passing by in billable hours, and after two years, I quit.”
Cohn moved to Africa to work with refugees after quitting her six-figure job, admitting her parents were concerned about her at the time. However, it didn’t take long for Cohn to prove her determination. She applied to the graduate film program at New York University and was accepted.
Cohn’s mother was the first in her family to go to college, and Cohn said she was fortunate to have been raised by such a strong, trailblazing woman.
“She always told me the world was open to me. I just needed to study, work hard and then go and take it. The key, she said, was education,” Cohn said. “She’s right, and thanks to her, I never felt like being a woman held me back.”
For 10 years afterward, Cohn worked for a production company in New York City and California and has only recently returned home to Mississippi to focus on her own projects.
“My husband, Pato, is also a filmmaker, and we work together. We can be based anywhere in the world and we choose Oxford,” Cohn said. “It’s just a great place to live – great public schools for our girls, amazing food and arts and an incredible community of people who are engaged in the community and the world. And no, I’ve never regretted leaving the fancy law firm.”
One of Cohn’s most important pieces of work to date is her documentary “Endo What?,” which focuses on endometriosis, a disease affecting one in 10 women worldwide.
“It’s arguably the most common, debilitating disease that most people have never heard of. ‘Endo What?’ is a film trying to change that devastating narrative. As I often say, ’It’s more than a film; it’s a tool to take control of your health,’” she said. “At its heart, ‘Endo What?’ is an educational film. We’re completing its follow-up film now. The second film approaches the disease from a social justice perspective. Our hope is that both films are catalyzing tools to truly change the narrative of this disease that affects hundreds, if not thousands, of girls and women in Oxford.”
Cohn suffers from the disease herself, and her daughters have an increased risk of developing symptoms. She said her inspiration was “working toward a future where her daughters and millions like them don’t have to needlessly suffer.”
Women’s pain has not been taken seriously historically by the medical community, and “Endo What?” seeks to break the cycle of gender bias and help with “giving women the information and tools to take control of their health.”
Cohn recently spoke at this past year’s UM Ted Talks to further raise awareness about the disease in the Ole Miss community. Her documentary has attained worldwide acclaim, been screened on six continents and started a “global conversation” about women’s health. It has been quoted in numerous national newspapers and magazines, such as the New York Times, as a film that “shatters the myths surrounding endometriosis.”
“It’s the first step in creating widespread awareness and education about endometriosis,” Cohn said. “To date, it’s screened on six continents and started a global conversation. We’re currently in production on a second film to be released later this year, which approached endometriosis as a social justice and human rights issue. That’s the next step. My hope is that a woman, or any person, walks away from the film not only educated, but empowered to go out and find answers and demand the best care for herself. I hope women learn the importance of being proactive in their healthcare, even beyond endometriosis.”
