Winnebago Man (2009)

Released in 2009 and directed by Ben Steinbauer, this documentary follows the unexpected viral fame of Jack Rebney, a Winnebago salesman whose profanity-filled outtake reel from a 1988 industrial video became one of the internet’s first viral sensations. Steinbauer tracks down the reclusive and cantankerous Rebney living off-grid in northern California, exploring the collision between pre-internet privacy and sudden online notoriety. The film captures Rebney’s rage, humor, and eventual reluctant acceptance as fans seek him out, while examining early internet culture, the ethics of viral celebrity, and the human being behind the meme.