Netflix will soon release a documentary titled Ibelin, showcasing the story of deceased disabled gamer Mats Steen. The documentary premiered at the 2024 Sundance Film Festival and featured interviews with the late gamer’s best friends and competitors. Furthermore, it has content from Steen’s archives.
According to BBC, Mats Steen suffered from a degenerative muscular disease called Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy (DMD). Reports suggest that Matt’s genes had a coding error that prevented his muscles from growing in a normal way. His father, Robert, recalled the heartbreaking day he learned of his son’s condition. He stated, “After we put Mats to bed that evening we called the doctor. We had been given permission to do that. We could call any time, if we needed more information.”
Mats’ mother, Trude, added, “I said to the doctor: ‘But at least he won’t die from this!’ The doctor on the other end of the line was silent for a moment, ‘no, but our experience is that these patients rarely live to be older than 20.”
When was Mats Steen diagnosed with Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy (DMD)?
Reports suggest that Robert and Trude Steen, Matt’s parents, learned about their son’s condition in May 1993. The couple decided to consult a doctor after they noticed that their son kept falling off the swings and hurting himself. Moreover, he did not climb up the ladder on the slide at the nursery and even supported himself on his knees like an elderly person while rising from a sitting position.
As for the upcoming documentary, Deadline reports that the creator Ibelin, Benjamin Ree, shared how “honored” feels to show Mats Steen’s story through Netflix. He stated how honored he was that his project was heading to Netflix. He said, “Many of my favorite documentary films and series of all time have been distributed by Netflix.”
Ree further stated, “It’s a huge honor that Ibelin will now be on Netflix. And Mats Steen’s story will be available to so many millions of people across the world. I couldn’t be more excited.”
Mats Steen died on November 18, 2014, at the age of 25.
