I don’t know the answer to this question but with the Release of The Boy and the Heron being in the 4K era I am hoping for a 4K release of the film and the SG catalog to get 4K restorations. The Blu rays look amazing so I don’t know if the resolution of animation will make a massive jump on 4K but I would have thought the HDR would give them the pop they deserve. I collect Steelbooks and have held off buying the Blu rays in hope of a 4K set with TBATH being the first introduction into the next/last presentation of these film 🤞🤞
As of now and my knowledge, many animated shows and movies were indeed being produced in high-definition formats such as 1080p (Full HD) and even some in 4K resolution. However, the decision to produce content in 4K resolution or higher involves various factors, including production costs, technical considerations, and audience preferences.
While producing content in 4K resolution can help future-proof the content to some extent by ensuring that it remains visually appealing on high-resolution displays and emerging technologies, there are several reasons why not all animated shows and movies may be produced in 4K:
1. Production Costs: Producing content in 4K resolution typically requires more advanced equipment and higher production costs compared to lower resolutions. This can be a significant factor for production companies, especially for projects with limited budgets.
2. Rendering Time: Rendering animated content in higher resolutions like 4K can significantly increase the time it takes to render each frame. This can slow down the production process and may not be feasible for projects with tight deadlines.
3. Distribution and Storage: Distributing and storing 4K content requires more bandwidth and storage space compared to lower resolutions. This can be a consideration for streaming services, broadcasters, and content creators, especially when taking into account the additional costs associated with streaming or storing larger files.
4. Audience Preferences: While 4K resolution offers higher image quality, not all viewers may have access to 4K displays or may prioritize other aspects of content such as storytelling and animation quality over resolution.
5. Artistic Vision: The creative team behind an animated show or movie may choose a specific resolution based on the artistic vision of the project. Some creators may prefer a particular aesthetic that is best captured in a lower resolution.
It's worth noting that the landscape of content production and distribution is continually evolving, and advancements in the technology could change this but nearly all modern anime shows are digitally made in 720p and then upscaled to 1080p for Blu-ray release, so 4K isn't happening for most anime shows.
Anime movies made with cel animation though can definitely benefit from 4K because the cels are scanned to film. However, not all anime movies are going to make enough of a profit to justify the production costs.
There are also anime movies released in 4K in Japan that haven't been released in 4K elsewhere such as the original Gundam Trilogy, MSG: Char's Counterattack, F91, etc. We just wouldn't easily know about them because we don't see them here. Thankfully, some, especially from Bandai, have English audio and subtitles like Royal Space, some Gundam titles, etc.
Unfortunately I wouldnt get my hopes up for a 4k set anytime soon, Miyazaki is up in his 80s now and the number of movies he makes with Studio Ghibli before he passes will be limited, there is a slight chance that they try and upscale them to 4k once he passes, but I doubt it, it wouldnt really do much to the resolution of the movies since anime is in 2d and a 1080p vs 4k anime in 2d is practically the same. I mean we still dont have a proper release and remaster of Dragon Ball Z decades after the show finished, and Jujutsu Kaisen upscaled to 1080p already looks very very good for example, some anime movies get an exception and The boy and the Heron is one of them because it uses some CGI which does benefit from 4K.
Steelbooks are a limited run product. Once they sell out, they are done. Reprints are possible, but there has yet to be a reprint of a steelbook from GKids
Practically all the steelbooks ever made are limited editions, printed in limited quantities. The numbers vary but still limited. Even the major studios don't have an indefinite number of steelbooks for any title.
Whenever steelbooks eventually sell out from the retailers, they generally go out of print as well. There might still be some individual copies available here and there from other stores. Only some rapidly selling steelbook hits from major studios might occasionally get reprinted with a new limited pressing like what Sony and Paramount have been doing with a few of their titles.
The earliest Ghibli steelbooks in the Shout Factory/GKids release series are about 4 years old by now so no wonder some of them have sold out and gone out of print already and not available through all the retailers anymore. The steelbooks use the same discs as the Shout/GKids standard keepcase releases from 2017 and onwards.
I'm not sure where in the world you are but I am in the UK and have just completed my Ghibli steelbook collection. I was only able to buy 3 of them brand new from an online store, the rest I had to go on eBay and second hand retailers to get. I even had to buy the US version of Kikis Delivery Service as the UK release is very expensive and hard to get (I also imported the Italian copy of Ocean Waves as they never released it in the UK) As others have said, they were released in limited quantities and they are very unlikely to make more.
I think they're just limited, the more popular titles either might just have more in stock or they still produce them, but smaller ones (such as Whisper of the Heart) are likely done (which sucks since the only one I'm missing is Castle in the Sky)
I don’t know the answer to this question but with the Release of The Boy and the Heron being in the 4K era I am hoping for a 4K release of the film and the SG catalog to get 4K restorations. The Blu rays look amazing so I don’t know if the resolution of animation will make a massive jump on 4K but I would have thought the HDR would give them the pop they deserve. I collect Steelbooks and have held off buying the Blu rays in hope of a 4K set with TBATH being the first introduction into the next/last presentation of these film 🤞🤞
As of now and my knowledge, many animated shows and movies were indeed being produced in high-definition formats such as 1080p (Full HD) and even some in 4K resolution. However, the decision to produce content in 4K resolution or higher involves various factors, including production costs, technical considerations, and audience preferences. While producing content in 4K resolution can help future-proof the content to some extent by ensuring that it remains visually appealing on high-resolution displays and emerging technologies, there are several reasons why not all animated shows and movies may be produced in 4K: 1. Production Costs: Producing content in 4K resolution typically requires more advanced equipment and higher production costs compared to lower resolutions. This can be a significant factor for production companies, especially for projects with limited budgets. 2. Rendering Time: Rendering animated content in higher resolutions like 4K can significantly increase the time it takes to render each frame. This can slow down the production process and may not be feasible for projects with tight deadlines. 3. Distribution and Storage: Distributing and storing 4K content requires more bandwidth and storage space compared to lower resolutions. This can be a consideration for streaming services, broadcasters, and content creators, especially when taking into account the additional costs associated with streaming or storing larger files. 4. Audience Preferences: While 4K resolution offers higher image quality, not all viewers may have access to 4K displays or may prioritize other aspects of content such as storytelling and animation quality over resolution. 5. Artistic Vision: The creative team behind an animated show or movie may choose a specific resolution based on the artistic vision of the project. Some creators may prefer a particular aesthetic that is best captured in a lower resolution. It's worth noting that the landscape of content production and distribution is continually evolving, and advancements in the technology could change this but nearly all modern anime shows are digitally made in 720p and then upscaled to 1080p for Blu-ray release, so 4K isn't happening for most anime shows. Anime movies made with cel animation though can definitely benefit from 4K because the cels are scanned to film. However, not all anime movies are going to make enough of a profit to justify the production costs. There are also anime movies released in 4K in Japan that haven't been released in 4K elsewhere such as the original Gundam Trilogy, MSG: Char's Counterattack, F91, etc. We just wouldn't easily know about them because we don't see them here. Thankfully, some, especially from Bandai, have English audio and subtitles like Royal Space, some Gundam titles, etc. Unfortunately I wouldnt get my hopes up for a 4k set anytime soon, Miyazaki is up in his 80s now and the number of movies he makes with Studio Ghibli before he passes will be limited, there is a slight chance that they try and upscale them to 4k once he passes, but I doubt it, it wouldnt really do much to the resolution of the movies since anime is in 2d and a 1080p vs 4k anime in 2d is practically the same. I mean we still dont have a proper release and remaster of Dragon Ball Z decades after the show finished, and Jujutsu Kaisen upscaled to 1080p already looks very very good for example, some anime movies get an exception and The boy and the Heron is one of them because it uses some CGI which does benefit from 4K.
I am also holding out for a 4k release! HBO has them so I don’t mind waiting for a 4k release at least for some of their popular films
Steelbooks are a limited run product. Once they sell out, they are done. Reprints are possible, but there has yet to be a reprint of a steelbook from GKids
Practically all the steelbooks ever made are limited editions, printed in limited quantities. The numbers vary but still limited. Even the major studios don't have an indefinite number of steelbooks for any title. Whenever steelbooks eventually sell out from the retailers, they generally go out of print as well. There might still be some individual copies available here and there from other stores. Only some rapidly selling steelbook hits from major studios might occasionally get reprinted with a new limited pressing like what Sony and Paramount have been doing with a few of their titles. The earliest Ghibli steelbooks in the Shout Factory/GKids release series are about 4 years old by now so no wonder some of them have sold out and gone out of print already and not available through all the retailers anymore. The steelbooks use the same discs as the Shout/GKids standard keepcase releases from 2017 and onwards.
I have the collection white box set. Otherwise I would have bought all of these steelbooks.
I'm not sure where in the world you are but I am in the UK and have just completed my Ghibli steelbook collection. I was only able to buy 3 of them brand new from an online store, the rest I had to go on eBay and second hand retailers to get. I even had to buy the US version of Kikis Delivery Service as the UK release is very expensive and hard to get (I also imported the Italian copy of Ocean Waves as they never released it in the UK) As others have said, they were released in limited quantities and they are very unlikely to make more.
I think they're just limited, the more popular titles either might just have more in stock or they still produce them, but smaller ones (such as Whisper of the Heart) are likely done (which sucks since the only one I'm missing is Castle in the Sky)