The sixth Odyssey Film Festival in the U.K. has named its opening-night feature: a documentary about the late Beyond frontman Wong Ka Kui. It’s titled “Because of You Ka Kui,” and it will premiere at the festival, which runs from Sept. 28 through Oct. 10.
A Hong Kong film has been secured for local release by NGO U.K.-China Film Collab, which took a similar approach with Robin Lee’s documentary “Four Trails.” when it came out last year. That documentary premiered at Odyssey and then screened in cinemas across 2025.
Wong Ka Kui’s Legacy
Beyond’s Wong Ka Kui met his end in an accident in Japan in 1993, at the age of 31. Even today, years after his death, his songs keep winning over fresh audiences. As the creative driving force behind the group, he helped shape a generation of Cantonese-speaking listeners across Hong Kong and further afield.
Directed by Hong Kong filmmaker Rosa Pang, the documentary is built around interviews with people who knew Wong in both personal and professional settings. It also draws on rare concert recordings, along with archive material from his early years that has never been shown before. Footage that has not been released until now rounds out the film’s visual material.
This film charts Wong’s musical journey, from his early encounters with music through the ascent of Beyond and his development as both a songwriter and a performer. It examines his creative methods, his personality, and his guiding principles.
The band’s former manager, Leslie Chan, along with Pang, described the film as a dedication to “a legend, an ordinary person, through memories of those who truly knew him. The film seeks to rediscover the real Wong Ka Kui.”.
The Team Behind the Film
One of Beyond’s founding members, Yip Sai Wing, and Leslie Chan are the people behind the production. Chan is given credit for discovering the group and handling its management from start to finish.
Beyond’s founding member William Tang also makes an appearance in the film. His interview took place in London, giving the project a U.K. connection.
Before it reaches the U.K., the film played theatres across Asia. Odyssey will host its first showing there, serving as the opening film for the event.
Why the Festival Chose It
Odyssey’s sixth edition is built around the theme #Fashion. The festival’s artistic director and founder, Hiu Man Chan, said the opening pick reflects the festival’s aim to treat fashion as more than clothing and catwalks, and to explore how film, music, visual identity and pop culture feed into one another.
“Beyond did not simply follow the fashion of their generation, in many ways, they helped create it, like Oasis for the U.K.,” Chan said. “Their music, image, attitude and style became part of the cultural memory of Hong Kong and influenced generations across Asia. Fashion is not only about what an era wears; it is also about how a generation chooses to see and express itself. That makes ‘Because of You Ka Kui’ a very meaningful film to launch this year’s Odyssey.”
The film’s arrival in the U.K. was something Chan described as “my true honor.”.
The choice also carries the fashion theme into youth culture and music. Beyond’s appearance and sound, which blended international rock influences with a fast-changing Hong Kong of the 1980s and early 1990s, came to define a generation of young fans.
The documentary offers a rare look at the man behind the bandleader and icon, according to Yip. He has called it a chance to find the “ordinary person”.
The Film’s International Journey
Abnormal Studios, a Malaysian company, put “Because of You Ka Kui” into international release at FilMart in March, using it as the flagship title for its new sales arm aimed at foreign markets.
The talks between Abnormal Studios and U.K.-China Film Collab got underway in March, when the NGO turned up at FilMart in Hong Kong as part of the U.K. Film Pavilion.
The film’s international sales strategy follows a pattern set by last year’s “Four Trails,” which opened Odyssey and then expanded into cinemas in 2025.
What the Directors Said
Rosa Pang spoke directly about the film’s message. “‘Because of You Ka Kui’ is not about nostalgia. The honesty of Wong Ka Kui as a person – in what he thought, felt and believed – continues to resonate today,” she said.
Leslie Chan offered his own response to the interviews. “I really felt that I came to know Ka Kui all over again,” he said.
Producers are wagering that viewers outside Hong Kong will find the same content compelling. The U.K. premiere at Odyssey provides the documentary with exposure far beyond its Asian release.
A Festival Built Around Fashion
This year’s Odyssey is centered on #Fashion, and each edition of the festival revolves around a distinct theme. The event spans from Sept. 28 through Oct. 10.
The Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office in London has provided support for the start of the event and part of the schedule. The festival mixes older films with newer ones.
| Date | Event |
|---|---|
| Sept. 28–Oct. 10 | Odyssey Film Festival runs |
| Sept. 28 | “Because of You Ka Kui” opens the festival |
The festival’s programming aims to connect film, music, visual identity and pop culture. Opening with a tribute to Wong Ka Kui fits that ambition directly, since Beyond’s music and image were central to Hong Kong’s cultural memory.
What This Means for Wong’s Memory
The film’s U.K. premiere at Odyssey is a significant step for Wong’s legacy. It brings his story to a new audience in a country that shares a musical language with Hong Kong.
That William Tang’s interview was filmed in London gives the piece a human element. It demonstrates how the story of Beyond spans continents, with those closest to Wong now spread across many nations.
According to the producers, the concert recordings and archive material featured in the film have never been released before. Alongside the interviews, these rare visual records give viewers a sense of Wong as a living presence, rather than a distant memory.
A well-worn route guides the film’s passage through foreign lands: it began at FilMart, and now it opens a major festival in the U.K. The NGO knows this course intimately, for it followed the same plan last year with “Four Trails.”.
The fact that the film is opening a festival in the U.K. speaks to Wong’s reach. Beyond’s music was part of Hong Kong’s cultural memory, and this film brings that memory to a new audience.
The filmmakers have clearly aimed to present Wong as he truly was, rather than how he came to be remembered. Interviews with those who knew him personally and professionally form the backbone of that approach. Rare concert recordings and archive material supply additional depth, revealing Wong’s early days and his development as both a songwriter and a performer.
The festival’s fashion theme is broad enough to include youth culture and music. Beyond’s sound and look, which mixed international rock influences with a rapidly changing Hong Kong of the 1980s and early 1990s, became bound up with a generation of young fans.
Source material: “Beyond Frontman Doc ‘Because of You Ka Kui’ to Open U.K.’s Odyssey Film Festival, Lands Local Distribution (EXCLUSIVE),” Variety.
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