While I understand your feelings here... I fear that with year of release people will be wanting to put in the year the home video was released which may not be the same thing. Could cause problems (just don't know if that is the right thing to call it).

In some country's a movie is released in cinema's much later or never....., so YoP is the best option here....

But not all movies are released theatrically ...

We could leave it as it is.  It's the wording leaves a little to be desired.  But everyone knows what it is at this point.  Things are working fine.  Seems like a lot of confusion to get it worded slightly better.

>>>Albeit too late for Christmas and Version 3.9.0 I'd like a name change of current field "Year of Production" to "Year of Release" (as it is currently based on the theatrical release or first airing) and adding a new field "Year of Production" which would then be based on the copyright note of the movie/series.<<<


The copyright date has absolutely nothing to do with "year of release" or "year of production". Some films were in the "can" for 1 to 2 years before they were copyrighted and another 1 to 2 years before actual release. Some films (eg: Night of the Living Dead) were released and (through oversight) never copyrighted.....instant public domain.



>>>In some country's a movie is released in cinema's much later or never.....,<<<

>>>But not all movies are released theatrically ...<<<


Makes no difference.
Year of first release....any country, to theatres, TV (first airing), video/DVD (date released to stores).

Chaplin's Limelight was released in LA in 1972 (and even won the years Academy Award for Best Original Score), but that doesn't change the fact that the film is always shown as being: Limelight (1952), first released in the UK in 1952.

"Year of Production" is misnomer.
Take, for example, the film The Outlaw (1943)
Production year (s) : Nov. 1940 to Feb. 1941
Copyright date 1941
Release date 1943


>>>But everyone knows what it is at this point<<<

Yup....or, they should.