Happiness Is… 2015

Chan moves from Guangzhou to Hong Kong after his mother's death

After his mother's death, Chan Kai-yuk leaves Guangzhou and relocates to Hong Kong in an effort to reconnect with his estranged father. He carries the weight of loss while hoping for a chance to rebuild his family life. The move sets him on a difficult path of housing, work, and belonging in a new city.

Chan loses his job and becomes homeless

Chan is sacked from a restaurant, and with mounting bills he cannot afford housing, forcing him to sleep on the streets. The experience of street life exposes him to hardship and the need for help from others. He begins to rely on strangers and to rethink his plan to establish himself in Hong Kong.

Kam helps Chan; Beloved Community Centre offers a lifeline

Kam, a chef at Beloved Community Centre, finds Chan sleeping rough and offers practical help. The Beloved centre becomes a crucial lifeline, presenting Chan with an opportunity to gain stability and possibly work there. This act of kindness introduces him to a local network of support in the neighborhood.

Chan secures a residence through Tse with an egg gift

To qualify for a Beloved job, Chan needs proof of address, so he seeks help from Tse Yuen-fan. After Chan gives Tse a dozen eggs, she agrees to take him as a tenant, providing him a place to live and a path back to stability. The arrangement marks the beginning of his new life under Tse’s quiet, orderly routine.

Chan moves in with Tse and joins Beloved's circle

Chan officially becomes Tse’s tenant and moves into her modest home. He soon finds himself drawn into the Beloved community’s world, meeting Xiaoyue, a Guangzhou intern, and Fong, a social worker. This new living situation positions him for his eventual work at Beloved and his evolving relationships.

Chan starts at Beloved; he likes Xiaoyue but she has a boyfriend

With a residential address, Chan begins working at Beloved Community Centre on a food-sharing task, alongside Xiaoyue and Fong. He develops a crush on Xiaoyue, but soon learns she is in a relationship, which complicates his feelings. The job strengthens his ties to classmates and Tse, expanding his support network.

Tse is diagnosed with mild cognitive disorder

Tse undergoes a Mini-Mental State Examination at Beloved and is diagnosed with mild cognitive disorder due to a low score. Chan is initially indifferent to the diagnosis, but his view shifts as Tse begins to lose her sense of direction. The diagnosis triggers Chan’s growing sense of responsibility toward her.

Chan’s fear of caregiving leads him to flee, then he returns

Fearing the burden of caring for Tse, Chan flees the flat when her condition worsens. After seeing Tse search for him in nearby areas, he remembers his late mother and returns to care for her, starting medications to slow the deterioration. This act marks a turning point where Chan accepts the duty of a son.

Fat helps Chan find his father and family; the ice-cream moment

With Fat's help, Chan locates his father and meets his new family, including a younger stepbrother. He secretly takes the boy to an indoor playground and treats him to ice cream, trying to build a connection. The moment foreshadows tensions when family obligations collide with the father's new life.

A painful hospital incident and estrangement

Chan takes the younger brother to hospital after a peanut allergy incident, and his angry father lashes out, with the new wife ordering him to sever ties. Chan is left heartbroken and accepts distance, while Tse and Xiaoyue offer comfort. The scene hardens the sense of chosen family around Chan.

Tse designs a will that binds Chan to care for her

Tse, realizing her worsening condition, makes a will naming Chan as the inheritor of all her properties, including the flat from her former boss, on the condition that he cares for her as his son. The arrangement cements a family-like bond and gives Chan a new purpose. Tse also leans into her past hobby of drawing as a form of solace.

Chan rises in life and Xiaoyue heads home

Chan settles into a new life with Tse’s support, resuming work at a restaurant while continuing to care for her. Tse draws again and the two form a stable, if unorthodox, family. Xiaoyue returns to Guangzhou, leaving a note that reveals she admired Chan’s devotion to his mother years earlier.

Xiaoyue’s Guangzhou return and recognition

The leaving note hints at a memory of a Guangzhou hospital and how Chan’s care for his mother touched Xiaoyue from afar, a detail he hadn’t realized before. The moment deepens the film’s theme of memory and connection across distance. The story closes on the strength of the bonds formed in Hong Kong.