The "memoirs" on which this film was based - Misha: A Memoire of the Holocaust Years, by Belgian-born, US-based writer Misha Defonseca - were determined to be fake in February 2008. The author admitted in an interview with Belgian newspaper "Le Soir" that "It's not the true reality, but it is my reality. There are times when I find it difficult to differentiate between reality and my inner world."