Maureen O'Sullivan was spotted by director Frank Borzage in Dublin during production. He initially asked her to appear in the film as an extra, but then offered her a primary role. This became be her first role in a film and jump started her career.
Shot simultaneously in the standard 35mm format, and Fox's 70mm Grandeur format, meaning that each sequence was shot twice. Only the 35mm version survives. The Grandeur version was never released, and all image and sound elements from it were lost in a 1937 fire at a Fox storage facility in Little Ferry, New Jersey.
John McCormick's selection of Frank Borzage as director for this film was announced on June 15, 1929.
Despite being Maureen O'Sullivan's first film, it was released after So This Is London (1930), her second film.
Fox paid McCormack the unprecedented sum of $500,000 and sent a crew and director Borzage to Ireland to film the tenor.