All of the language in the film is authentic. Director Michael Matthews said they went to great lengths to have local languages represented in the film. It switches from English to Xhosa and Sesotho.
All of the children in the movie are local villagers. Many of them were studying to be in local theatre and they, according to director Matthews, took direction remarkably well.
Director Michael Matthews said that there were times when it was extremely cold during filming. You never know it because it's always sunny and it looks hot and dry. But in one scene where actress Zethu Delomo was riding away on a horse, she was close to having hypothermia due to the freezing conditions.
The director spent years touring the South African landscape to find the perfect filming location to create the right look.
Actor Vuyo Dabula did all of his own stunts with the exception of falling off the horse. That was not permitted. But everything else, including being hung upside down, was all him.