The character of Sergei Rippas is loosely based on Boris Sirpo. He also taught Heimo Haitto, the main inspiration for the film.
The final collaboration by directors Pirjo Honkasalo and Pekka Lehto, along with their production company P-kino Oy.
Actors Raimo Karppinen, Tarmo Manni and Rea Mauranen spend seven weeks in the United States (main locations include Los Angeles, Las Vegas and the Mojave Desert), often filming at night or in the small hours of the morning. Manni and Mauranen were also present at the 1985 Cannes Film Festival, where the film screened at the independent "Directors' Fortnight" section. It was the second Finnish film in the category, after A Time of Roses (1969).
A 12-year-old violinist Jan Söderblom (playing Arto Arsi as a child) practiced Max Bruch's "Violin Concerto No. 1" for about two years and plays it himself during the opening credits. Atso Almila composed the film's score in a style of Bruch.