Ulrica (2025)
Project Synopsis:
Ulrica is an audiovisual installation featuring a film shot entirely underwater in the cenotes of Mexico’s Yucatán Peninsula—sacred sites once central to Mayan rituals and vital water sources for civilizations across centuries.
It tells the story of a French submariner who, after his vessel is attacked during World War II, plunges into the Atlantic depths to escape the haunting sounds of a feared enemy vessel known as Ulrica. Hiding among underwater caves and wreckage, he experiences a surreal merging of time and identity.
In the installation, the film’s soundtrack is performed live with piano, multi-percussion, live electronics, and a narrator. The setting incorporates three LED lights, octophonic sound (eight speakers surrounding the audience), and hydrophones (underwater microphones) capturing realtime sounds from a live fish tank. Specially crafted instruments, such as a miniature boat with steel sails played with a percussion bow, add further interative sonic texture.
This immersive production and sound design aim to recreate the soundscape divers hear beneath the surface, while evoking an introspective emotional journey—one that reflects the trauma and ecological sabotage wrought by war on both the human psyche and the natural world. Amidst this devastation, however, the enduring wonder of nature remains.
Stills from Ulrica
The installation received the Alan D. Marks Center Project Grant, as well as technical support from the Juilliard Center for Creative Technology, and was premiered at Bruno Walter Orchestral Studio, The Juilliard School, on May 4th, 2025.
Live Crew
Piano: Hongbo Cai
Multi-Percussion: Bolditzár Kovács
Live Electronics: Ziyi Tao
Narrator: John Blake
Stage Manager: Max Salzman
Film Production Crew:
Cast: Francisco Gil
Sound Design: Carol Yan Li
Special Effect: Weiying Jin
Color Grading: Juliette Ho
Dive Shop Coordination: Xtreme Dive Centers, Playa del Carmen, Q.R.
Cinematography & Production Design: Hongbo Cai
Written, Produced, & Directed by Hongbo Cai
The project gratefully acknowledges the following private and public dive sites for allowing sampling of audio and visual footages: Cenote Angelita, Cenote Carwash, Cenote Dreamgate, Cenote Maravilla, Cenote Zapote, C-53 Shipwreck, El Pit, Manchones Junior, MUSA (Underwater Museum of Art), Yucab
