Ibelin

Source: Bjørg Engdahl / Medieoperatørene

Ibelin

Netflix has acquired Benjamin Ree’s Sundance World Cinema Documentary Competition selection Ibelin, the streamer confirmed on Friday morning.

The Norwegian documentary premiered on Thursday opening day and tells the story of Mats Steen, a gamer who died of a degenerative muscular disease at age 25.

His parents believed Mats led a solitary life without love and friendships, however after he died they learned he in fact led a rich digital life through the game World Of Warcraft which left a profound impact on a community of fellow gamers.

Ree (The Painter And The Thief) and his filmmaking team reconstructed animated moments from Mats’ gameplay and narrated entries from his blog and interviews with people who knew him as Ibelin.

Ingvil Giske produced for Medieoperatørene in co-production with Norway’s VGTV. 

Salma Abdalla and Jason Resnick of Autlook Filmsales negotiated the deal on behalf of the filmmakers.