Lost Sea (working title, in development) is a multi-platform narrative inspired by an underground lake, deep inside a cave, near Chattanooga, Tennessee. An actual place, with a history tracing back to (and beyond) the earliest humans of the region, it was an outpost of different cultures – until it was converted into a tourist attraction in the 1960s. Our version of this “lost sea” explores what might have been – a repository of the collective unconscious of the American South.

Combining video game technology, photogrammetry, and animation (Unreal Engine, Agisoft Metashape, Live Link Face), this project will feature arcade-style gaming consoles available for free to the public.

Created by a diverse group of collaborators, Lost Sea is structured around stories of people who have left their homes and find themselves transformed. Above ground, a seductively brutal and absurd environment loops endlessly, while our protagonist is encouraged to explore a beautiful and more communicative world below…

Creators include: Obie Award-winning designer and theater-maker Ben Williams, multimedia designer and performer Victor Morales, visual artist Sahana Ramakrishnan, writer Chanel Blanchett, writer and filmmaker Brian Cagle, with additional art by the late Dennis J. Palmer, and an array of talented performers.

Lost Sea (working title)