Oscar Wilde once famously wrote that “life imitates art far more than art imitates life.”
It’s an undoubtedly overworked reference but just as applicable in the case of filmmaker Farzad Sangari’s documentary Mudbloods — an evocative cinematic probe into the real-life growing collegiate sport of quidditch. That’s right quidditch. The competitive semi-contact game that features wizards flying broomsticks and “seekers” chasing the “snitch” from the fictional universe of Harry Potter.
“When I first saw it I sort of stopped in my tracks” says Sangari recalling the time he witnessed “chasers” running around a field after a “quaffle” on UCLA’s campus. “As a filmmaker I was initially intrigued but then noticing other people gathering around really piqued my interest.”
A film graduate from UCLA himself Sangari began investigating the underground world of real-life quidditch and discovered an entire organization that’s been arranging intercollegiate tournaments for half a decade and has even sponsored World Cup events. Eager to explore the phenomenon further Sangari introduced himself to Tom Marks — captain of the UCLA team — who convinced him to pick up a broomstick.
“That was one of the first things we did. I think it gave us some credibility with them” says Sangari who’s quick to point out that anybody who underestimates the gender-inclusive sport will be in for a wake-up call. “It’s intense. You only see one person [in the film] getting really injured to where the medics come in but that’s happening on almost every field.”
If you’re familiar with quidditch from Potter-lore you’ll be pleased to know that most of the features of the game remain. There are seven players per side and three hoops at either end of the field and the gameplay is some combination of dodgeball rugby and capture-the-flag. As the film points out the main issue with bringing the sport to life involved the “snitch.” In J.K. Rowling’s literature it was a small self-propelled ball with wings that if captured ended the game. In this version it’s a slightly less wondrous tennis ball hidden in a sock that hangs from a player’s belt.
The film (which was released through iTunes earlier this week) focuses primarily on the UCLA quidditch team as it attempts to raise funds to compete in the fifth annual Quidditch World Cup in New York. At a deeper level though it’s an earnest look at how the sport has brought together unlikely candidates — from serious athletics students to a trio of hardcore Harry Potter-themed rappers.
“The stuff I really took to — and what we put in the film — was the idea of friendship and sacrifice” says Sangari. “A lot of that stuff translates into sport and I think you see that at the banquet (scenes) where that’s really what it’s about — this group of people who come together and develop those relationships that are tangible and it shapes their lives.”
The film highlights the sport’s inclusiveness and the sense that in spite of quidditch’s nerdy reputation people from all walks of life are welcome. As one player says: “there’s no judgment in quidditch — you’re playing a sport from a fantasy book so you’ve already opened up a little part of yourself.”
Admittedly not a Harry Potter fanatic himself (“I like the movies but I didn’t read any of the books”) Sangari was also surprised to discover how popular the sport has grown in such a short time something he credits to a generation weaned on the franchise. “They don’t have an infrastructure in a normal sense and the way they get around it is through social media. They’re super professional in that regard they know how to communicate” says Sangari — warning skeptics that this may just be the start of something big. “There’s a lot of people out there who are doing this.”
