Terrific news, and great timing for me as I'll be in Tokyo in April - hopefully can pick this up myself and try some out.
I fear that holding your breath is a waste of energy. I'm quite certain that this product is a clo... eh, pardon ... very similar to Kentmere 100/400 which are (minor differences put aside) aka "APX 100/400 new" aka "RPX100/400" aka "CHM100/400" (did I forget one?), at least one of which should already be readily available where you live. What makes me so certain? Well, the company "Cybergraphics" that is behind the "Seagull" film product and which used to call itself "Oriental" many moons ago, is the official Japanese distributor of Harman products (Ilford and Kentmere). They even run the semi-official Japanese Ilford site at ilfordphoto.jp. And when you look at the press release and the pictures, everything starting from the typography on the box to the packaging with the Harman-typical perforation literally screams "Harman".
I've always liked Oriental paper so I'm curious to see what they do in film. Plus - a new black and white film! That certainly doesn't happen often.
It depends on your definition of "new black and white film". To slightly rephrase what Mirko of Adox said a while ago, all you need nowadays to "make" a "new" black and white film is a sheet of paper, a printer and the necessary cash on your bank account. So it happens all the time (see the list above). Developing a new film in the strict sense of the word, that is from scratch, however is something that is way beyond the capability of a distribution company like Cybergraphics. Oriental has not produced (manufactured) film for many, many decades, and anyone who has expertise in that field has long left the company. Ordering a batch of film to some very general specifications (ISO speed 100/400, sensitivity not unlike that of a certain existing product, and "just a pinch of Zen added") is a completely different matter and will result in the more or less indistinguishable products like the ones listed above.
So IMHO this "new product" is not driven by engineering, that would be someone says, "let's create an interesting new film that has special qualities", it is most likely a market and marketing driven decision. Most likely has to do with the sharp price increase that Japan has witnessed for Ilford (also Kodak) branded products in recent years. That has created a vacuum in the sense of a sizeable market of more budget minded folks buying b&w film, which turned away from premium brand products and smaller independent importers try to serve them with Fomapan and other products. Apparently Cybergraphics does not want to give this market to competitors, hence it has introduced a budget alternative for its customers.
Now, don't get me wrong. I am a great fan of Kentmere 400, I think it is great product and use it all the time. And I have used APX400 new or CHM400 at times when I could not get hold of K400 without noticing any particular differences (rebate imprint aside).
. It means that there is a demand for it.
