In a 2023 interview with Filmmaker magazine,
Nicole Holofcener spoke about the personal thoughts and feelings that inspired the film: "A lifetime of wondering if people are lying to me inspired the idea. And when they don't lie, can I cope with that? I guess my experience of being vulnerable to other people's opinions about me and my work, and the fact that my work is so autobiographical. My movies feel like they're me. I really feel like they are so close to my personality and values and the things I think and worry about. And the characters-at least one usually-are so clearly based on me. And if they don't get it, can they get me? Can I also live with the possibility that they don't get it, or like it, and still love me? But yeah, sometimes I can cope with it well, and sometimes I can't. I still want approval, of course. Don't we all?"
