Director Sam Blair was careful to win over O'Sullivan's father and spent a year getting to know his mother, Maria, before proposing an interview. Even then, their conversations were held without cameras, and in the film his parents' voices play over the top of old home video and Polaroid pictures.
Director Sam Blair, spent the first three months earning Ronnie's trust before bringing in a single camera, although he needn't have: O'Sullivan felt safe immediately on meeting Blair, a low-key character.