Director: Benjamin Ree
Stars: Zoe Croft, Kelsey Ellison, Ed Larkin
Synopsis: Mats Steen, a Norwegian gamer, died of a degenerative muscular disease at the age of 25. His parents mourned what they thought had been a lonely and isolated life, when they started receiving messages from online friends around the world.
Ibelin, the documentary by filmmaker Benjamin Ree, feels like one of, if not the, most moving odes to video gaming imaginable. The reason being is that it is based around a deeply moving story about a young man named Mats Steen. Mats had Duchenne muscular dystrophy and sadly passed away at the age of 25. Yet Mats was also Ibelin Redmoore in the incredibly popular video game “World of Warcraft.” Whereas his parents thought Mats lived a lonely life isolated to his video games, Ibelin proves otherwise. With a massive archive of in-game chat logs and Mats’ blog to pull from, Ree enlists the help of animators and narrators to recreate moments in Mats’ life. It is a deeply touching documentary for a myriad of reasons, perhaps none more so than the simple fact that the impact simple gestures can have on the lives of those around us is truly unimaginable.
A majority of the documentary is actually recreated via animation in “World of Warcraft.” It struck a personal chord in me as this harkened back to the days of when Machinima was becoming immensely popular. Within it, there was an entire new artform that was paving a way for a variety of new stories to be told. And it all happened within the medium of video games, which, in my opinion, have always been an artform that has been belittled and unfairly ridiculed. Many of the individuals (Mats’ guild members) interviewed admit that people in their lives couldn’t comprehend the notion that there were actual friends to be made in the game. It’s an immensely reductive outlook on video games that has existed since the very creation of online gaming. To think that people you know through online means cannot have an impact on your life is wholly upsetting. The greatest success of Ibelin is in how clearly it dispels that myth.
Upon Mats’ passing, countless individuals he had met in “World of Warcraft” reached out to his parents recounting the experiences they shared with Mats. To see and hear from members of his guild all these years later is so touching. It’s a reminder that, even though the Internet (or more specifically social media) feels like it pulls us further and further apart, genuine connections can be made that will forever leave a mark on the life of a person. One needs to look no further than the connection between a mother and son that Mats helped foster. Having done so without meeting in person, or even using voice or audio chat, it’s a testament to the immeasurable spirit and good-heartedness of Mats. The real-life impact of helping others is felt in both directions, as Mats not only did all he could to help those beside him, but it allowed Mats to feel part of a community and to experience all the things he thought he’d never be able to. Love, freedom, even drinking at a bar! The in-game footage is so much fun, and delicately crafted to elicit emotions in the viewer in a way that feels real. Because to all those players, their emotions and feelings unequivocally were.
Another wonderful element of the documentary, albeit one that could have, and in my opinion, should have, been explored more, are the essential tools Mats used to play “World of Warcraft.” In the last few years of Mats’ life, he only had the ability to move his hands. As such, a set of accessibility tools were used in order for him to continue playing. While there were some shortcomings in the technology at the time, some gaming companies have sought to make their consoles and technology all the more accessible. The Xbox Adaptive Controller released in 2018, and is beloved by many for its accessibility customization and price to ensure that anybody who wants to find themselves in, in Mats’ words, “A gateway to wherever your heart desires,” will have the ability to do so. While there’s still a long way to go in the world of making gaming more accessible and more understood by the world at large, Ibelin is a beautiful stepping stone in the right direction.
Ibelin celebrated its world premiere at the 2024 Sundance Film Festival in the World Cinema Documentary Competition category. It was acquired by Netflix, and will presumably release later this year.
