Is a M4 Macbook Air 32GB/1TB a no-brainer upgrade from M1 Mac Mini 16GB/1TB? Full use case details in post

Okay, first time poster. I *think* this would be a no-brainer upgrade, but I'm honestly having a hard time believing a Macbook Air could replace my Mac desktop, so I need to tap the forum on this. Then again, my last laptop was a mid-2012 MBP, so I might just have an outdated impression that Macbook Airs are wimpy. I'm leaning towards replacing my M1 Mac Mini with the M4 Macbook Air, but I want to make sure I'm not sacrificing anything with that swap. Also curious to see if anyone has other suggestions based on my use case.

Use Case:

1. I work in immersive theater, and I run automations on multiple massive spreadsheets. I primarily do the prep work on these at home on my desktop so I can see as much of the sheet as possible. Then I reference it on-the-go (as I am usually running up and down 4+ floors in 2 hours) holding my iPad Pro 11-inch. I usually only do light edits on my iPad on-site, but my current project is demanding that I edit more on-site, so the desktop limitation is killing me.

2. I take photos and videos of my work, and edit high-res RAW and MOV files in Photoshop, Lightroom, and Final Cut Pro. Again, I do most of the heavy-duty lifting on my desktop at home, and very rarely need to do this work while mobile.

Current Setup:

At home:

2020 M1 Mac Mini, 16GB memory, 1TB SSD

27-inch ASUS ProArt Display (2560x1440)

Logitech MX Keys & MX Anywhere 3 mouse

Super-mobile:

3rd-gen iPad Pro 11-inch, 512 GB

Apple Pencil 2nd-gen

Stretchy strap so the iPad is securely attached to one hand

On-site:

2020 M1 Mac Mini

Peripherals: 11-inch iPad Pro + Magic Keyboard (via Luna Display headless mode)

[Previously, I infrequently needed to have full computing power on-site, so this setup worked great as an occasional fix. This has now become an absolute pain, as I need to drag this along constantly and MacOS is tiny on an iPad.]

Other factors:

I only want to keep two devices, so I'm looking to replace my Mac Mini. I will keep all my peripherals, and will still connect my new laptop to them for photo/video editing.

I tend to keep my devices for as long as possible. The only reason I'm looking to replace my Mac Mini this soon is because I need to be more mobile. So, I'm future-proofing my RAM, but I'm not worried about storage, as I have external hard drives.

I commute via subway and I am very petite, so I tend towards smaller/lighter devices (13" or 14"), especially since I often carry my entire work backpack with me to happy hours/theatre shows in the city.

I'd like to stay under $2000. I don't think I need a Macbook Pro. I had one in 2013 because I was running virtual machines and 3D modeling software, but I don't do that sort of work anymore.

Okay, TL;DR - need more mobile setup. Want to double-check that an M4 Macbook Air with 32GB ram is just as (if not more) capable than my M1 Mac Mini with 16GB ram. Thank you for any and all suggestions!