A new documentary, called Three Identical Strangers, premiered at the Sundance Film Festival last night.
Robert Shafran, David Kellman, and Ed Gelland’s story began when they were separated at birth for a science experiment measuring nurture vs nature. Two of the three brothers walked the red carpet as their story was told to hundreds of people at the film festival.
A scientist in Long Island, Dr Neubauer, separated a number of twins and triplets by putting them in different adoptive houses from birth. Throughout their lives they were brought to a Manhatten, for monitoring and checking. The team wanted to establish if they all had the same levels of growth and development.
The adoptive parents didn’t know at the time that the children had siblings, but were aware that they were part of a ‘child development study’.
It wasn’t until years later that one of the brothers moved into a house at college with a stranger, who said that he looked and acted very like a guy that he knew. Once they were introduced they realised they were long lost brothers. Their story was printed on a local newspaper, at which point the third brother spotted it and knew that he was related to them based on looks.
After they went looking for answers it was established that they were, in fact, triplets who had been separated at birth. Not only were they nearly identical but they even liked the same brand of cigarettes and all had an interest in older women.
In their 20s, they all moved in together and opened a restaurant called Triplets.
Their lives took a sad turn when one of the brothers, Eddy, died by suicide at the age of 33. It later transpired that there was a history of mental health issues in the family, something that was also hidden from the boys and their adoptive families.
The other two brothers closed down the restaurant and went back to train as a solicitor and an insurance consultant.
The documentary looks back at their lives and their story and gives a fascinating insight into how they were growing up.
Each of the adoptive parents claimed that the boys all showed signs of separation anxiety in the early years and one of the brothers also believed as a young boy that he had a brother.
The documentary won massive praise at Sundance. Here’s a look at the trailer:
