Danny Glover's birthday was the same night the concert scene was filmed. During the first take, when Woolfolk said "action", instead of playing the music for the scene, the orchestra played Happy Birthday, followed by a cake being brought onto the set. In his remarks to the cast and crew, Glover spoke of how he and Bennet Guillory had performed in the building thirty-five years earlier when it first opened as a community center and theater.
Japan has several regional dialects, and the one in Kochi Prefecture - called Tosa-ben - is widely regarded as one of the more distinct ones. With its own unique accent, intonations, and vocabulary, Tosa-ben is known throughout Japan as one of the most difficult Japanese dialects to master. Wanting to be as authentic as possible, Aaron Woolfolk insisted that the Japanese characters speak in Tosa-ben. Thus, several consultants were used throughout the production to help the actors.
A scene from this movie was publicly performed in 2003, at a gala event honoring up-and-coming writers. Danny Glover played the role of Daniel, and CCH Pounder performed the role of Daniel's sister-in-law Natalie, whose character later evolved into Daniel's niece Lindsey.
Though deceased in this movie, the character Mickey is very much alive, and featured as the central character in the short films "Eki" (The Station) and "Kuroi Hitsuji" (Black Sheep). "Eki," a comedy, takes place two weeks after Mickey first arrives in Japan. "Kuroi Hitsuji", a drama, takes place after Mickey has been in Japan for six months.
The romantic relationship between Mickey and Noriko, that is at the center of this movie, can be seen in its earliest stages in the short film "Kuroi Hitsuji" (Black Sheep).
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