The film was made and released about four years after its source book of the same name by and Anne McDonald and Rosemary Crossley had been first published in 1980.
The type of disability that Annie O'Farrell (Tina Arhondis) had in this Australian feature film directed by Gil Brealey was "cerebral palsy". This was the same that Julia (Heather Rose) has in another but later Australian film, Rolf de Heer's 'Dance Me to My Song (1998). Both these directors have had strong associations with the South Australian Film Corporation.
The film was nominated for seven AFI (Australian Film Insitute) Awards and ended up winning three gongs including Best Film.
Director Gil Brealey won for this picture the Prize of the Ecumenical Jury at the Montréal World Film Festival in 1984.
Source authoress Anne McDonald was originally going to portray herself in the film but had grown-up past the age of her character by the time the movie went into development and production so Tina Arhondis was cast to play Annie.