A unique project frames college football as an intricately choreographed mass ritual

Like hundreds of millions of people around the world, the US-based artist and photographer Paul Pfeiffer is captivated by live, large-scale sporting events. However, unlike most faces in the crowd, Pfeiffer is far less interested in the final score than the sophisticated choreography and emotional manipulation that characterises these grand productions, and extends far beyond the playing field. This short from the documentary series Art21 explores Pfeiffer’s video work Red Green Blue (2022), which documents the production infrastructure that usually goes unseen at a University of Georgia college football game – from the cues of the band leader to the work of the ‘Director of Fan Experience’. The resulting film forms a unique anthropological look at live sports as both a mass media spectacle and group ritual.