Tom Cowan had long been interested in the experiences of Greek migrants in Australia, previously making the short Helena of Sydney.
He got the idea from making a film about a bride brought to Australia without ever having met the man she would marry from a Greek journalist.
[2][3] A number of changes were made from the original play, including adding and removing certain characters, and opening it up instead of setting it all in the one location.
[4] Cowan originally wanted Irene Papas to play the lead but she was unavailable, so imported Yelena Zigon from Yugoslavia.
Cowan used a small crew of 14 technicians including several recruits from the Australian Film, Television and Radio School such as Gillian Armstrong and Graham Shirley.