It's no secret this is a safe space for physical media aficionados. Around here, we celebrate remasters and the ability of plucking a favorite title off the shelf (especially when it's been removed from whatever streaming platform it was temporarily on). Horror fans often pride themselves on their physical media collections, which range from various types of discontinued media, near-defunct media, practically extinct media that has recently made a comeback, and the latest and greatest gorgeous 4k transfers. Best Buy recently announced they're ending their physical media sales altogether after the new year, which was jarring news for someone who habitually spent a hefty portion of their very first paychecks on VHS tapes and DVDs from Best Buy. Jarring, but not entirely shocking.
A recent argument that has been coming up is the demand for the physical release of straight-to-streaming fare. Hulu's Prey getting a proper physical release was big news, a move in the right direction, with fans hoping other giant streamers will follow suit. Granted, we have our niche arthouse home release distributors doing the good lord's work and keeping not just physical media, but high-quality physical media worthy of our limited shelf space alive. Independent filmmakers play a huge part in carrying that torch as well (as they have since the advent of home release). One of the biggest contemporary horror titles, Terrifier and its recent sequel Terrifer 2 released both a SteelBook®, and a VHS. I'm preaching to the choir here, but fans... not shocking to any of us... absolutely ate it up. There is an audience for physical media. Major retailers may no longer be tapping into that niche, but we are grateful for the indie distributors and filmmakers keeping collectible physical media alive and well.
Another production company making waves in the space is WithAnO Productions, who has already released a SteelBook® and VHS for their spring release Kill Her Goats, which we gave you a peek of at the beginning of this year. WithAnO Productions is back and is set to release a brand-new original horror film, Fog City. A physical release was particularly important to Fog City Writer/Director Steve Wolsh, who grew up in the heyday of the video store experience, “The way you discovered movies when I was growing up was by picking them off a shelf to examine the cover art and read the back cover. I never want our fans to lose that experience.” Earlier this year, the production company launched a crowdfunding campaign to bring the SteelBook® to life, and absolutely crushed their goal. Case in point: the fans want physical media.
Fog City is a horror action thriller slated to release on most major streaming platforms with VOD on December 13th, but you can Pre-Order their most comprehensive collectors set yet. The Fog City SteelBook® is the first ever SteelBook® laser etched with individual numbers 1-4,000, and each Fog City SteelBook® has a large fully embossed West Craven County Line sign magnet inside. Also...it has a freaking bullet hole in it! Plus, well-known artist Orlando “Mexifunk” Arocena (John Wish, Marvel, Everything Everywhere All at Once), and they’ve loaded this release with:
- Individually numbered via laser etching from 1 to 4,000
- Custom Slipcover with art reveal
- Custom emboss/deboss tooling on front/back of the SteelBook
- Spot gloss and varnish on both sides of the SteelBook
- Bullet hole "entry wound" (front) and Bullet hole "exit wound" (back) both accentuated with custom emboss/deboss tooling
- Bloody-Stunning 4K Ultra HD Disc
- Unrated Version Blu-Ray Disc
- HD Digital Code you can watch on all your devices
- Fully Embossed Magnet 4'' x 5''
- High Gloss Collectible Mini-Poster
- English and Spanish Subtitles
Let's take a closer look at Arocena's artwork and that SteelBook® detail.
Fog City Limited Edition SteelBook® cover art by Orlando Arocena.
Custom slip cover reveals new art underneath.
Emboss and debossed tooling on the front and back cover.
Spot gloss and varnish finish.
Custom interior artwork under the offset stacked disc set.
Laser-etched numbering out of 4000.
Accentuated "bullet hole" easter egg on the front and back.
SteelBook®, Blu-ray, DVD, and HD Digital 3-pack are available for pre-order. Watch the Official Fog City trailer below and pre-order your copy now at WatchFogCity.com.
