Ruth Cracknell was the one who suggested Toni Collette having been a huge fan of hers since she saw her in Muriel's Wedding. Collette was also a huge fan of Cracknell's and of the show Mother and Son and was excited to hear Cracknell was a huge fan of hers too.
Ruth Cracknell, a Shakespearean actress and life long fan of William Shakespeare's knew the Shakespearean monologues she recited off by heart before the film was green lit.
Based loosely on the life of legendary eccentric Bea Miles, who recited Shakespeare for a dollar on the streets of Sydney and rode taxis for a sonnet.