The "Hotel Sorrento" name and title of this movie and source stage play is not actually a hotel but a nickname for the homely residence of the Moynihan sisters.
According to the article titled, "Returning Home", published in the June 1995 edition of Australian movie magazine "Cinema Papers", as cited in website Wikipedia, Writer, Producer, and Director "Richard Franklin had worked for a number of years in the U.S., although he had lived in Australia since 1985. He was becoming frustrated with Hollywood and decided to make a film for the 'art house market'. He contacted his brother-in-law, Peter Fitzpatrick, who had written a number of books on Australian theatre and asked him to recommend an Australian play which might make a good film. Fitzpatrick put forward 'Hotel Sorrento' and Franklin loved it."
Caroline Gillmer was the only cast member from this movie who had performed in a production of the source stage play. However, Gillmer did not play the novelist sister in this movie as she had done on stage, she portrayed the older sister character.
Sam Newman: The Australian Rules Football legend from the Geelong Football Club and star of the long running Australian television program The Footy Show (1994) as a football commentator.