The film's Mehdipour family is based on the director Hamy Ramezan's own experiences 30 years ago, when his own family came to Finland to escape the war between Iran and Iraq. The 2015 refugee flow to Europe and the ensuing public debate haunted Ramezan, and in those mental landscapes the young director set about preparing his first feature film. The first versions of the manuscript were full of nightmares and dark compared to what ended up in the final version.