Beyond Frontman Documentary to Open UK's Odyssey Film Festival
A documentary about the late singer-songwriter Wong Ka Kui, leader of the Hong Kong band Beyond, has been selected to open a UK film festival and will get a local release. Variety reports that "Because of You Ka Kui" will premiere in the UK as the opening film of the sixth Odyssey Film Festival.
The festival is set to run from September 28 to October 10 in cinemas and online. The non-profit organization U.K.-China Film Collab, which runs the event, has also secured the Hong Kong film for distribution in the region.
Directed by Rosa Pang, the documentary features interviews with people who knew Wong, alongside rare concert recordings and previously unseen archival footage. It traces his journey from his early musical interests through Beyond's rise. The producers include Beyond founding member Yip Sai Wing and the band's former manager, Leslie Chan.
Odyssey's artistic director, Hiu Man Chan, stated that the band's influence went beyond music, helping to define the style and attitude of a generation in a manner comparable to Oasis in the UK. This year's festival theme is fashion, which the director described as being about how a generation expresses itself.
Per Variety, discussions to bring the film to the UK began in March at the FilMart event in Hong Kong. The documentary previously had a theatrical run in Asia.
