Lei-Lei Cinema presents Tokyo Cabbageman K (1980)

Join us for a rare screening of Tokyo Cabbageman K (1980), a cult DIY film by Akira Ogata, showing at Belgrave Music Hall & Canteen on Sunday, 25 January 2026 at 7:00 PM.
This will be the first time the film has ever been screened in Leeds.

Shot on grainy Super 8 with raw punk energy, Tokyo Cabbageman K begins with a surreal and unforgettable premise: a young man named K wakes up to find his head has become a giant Chinese cabbage.

From there, the film launches into a whirlwind of media frenzy, voyeuristic curiosity, and absurd social pressure — a chaotic, darkly funny descent into the strange ways society reacts to anything it can’t understand.

The cast features Katsuro Onoue as the cabbage-headed K, with Kazushi Hosaka and Shigeru Muroi.Its distinct visual style is shaped by three underground cinema figures — Sogo Ishii, Yoshiharu Tezuka, and George Iida — whose kinetic camerawork and handmade aesthetic define the film’s anarchic feel.

The soundtrack is equally eclectic, jumping from Vivaldi to the blistering edge of Sheena & The Rokkets, amplifying the film’s unpredictable, DIY spirit.

Born in Saga Prefecture in 1959, Akira Ogata studied in Tokyo, where he met Sogo Ishii and created his first film — Tokyo Cabbageman K — in 1980. He later worked as an assistant director, then moved into music videos, TV films, and feature films. His acclaimed works include:

• The Boy’s Choir (2000)
• The Milkwoman (2006)
• Noriben: The Recipe of Fortune (2010)
• Walking with a Friend (2013)

Ogata has also appeared in several films as an actor, including Sogo Ishii’s Crazy Family (1984).

Tokyo Cabbageman K remains one of the most unusual and beloved oddities of Japanese underground cinema — visually inventive, tonally unclassifiable, and bursting with DIY attitude.

This screening is an extremely rare opportunity to experience a near-forgotten gem on the big screen. Essential viewing for fans of experimental film, offbeat humour, and the wilder corners of Japanese counter-culture.

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