The film has been described by Bryan Brown as Wer hat Angst vor Virginia Woolf? (1966) meets Das Piano (1993).
This is the first feature film of a Newton Thornburg novel to be made since Bis zum bitteren Ende (1981) which was around the time when the "Beautiful Kate" novel had been first published in 1982.
Actor Ben Mendelsohn responded immediately to the script and liked the way that writer-director Rachel Ward handled the provocative material: "Ned is a great character because he is someone that is significantly conflicted. Rach is extremely supportive and I think she is able to handle this material with a deft touch. It's a pretty full on story and that's part of what is so attractive about the whole thing...but it's handled and written in a very good manner."