The film was Madonna's artistic response to a series of social and political events which took place around the world while she was performing The MDNA Tour in the second half of 2012.
One of the scenes was inspired by the film The Night Porter, while another was inspired by the scene in the film noir Caged where Eleanor Parker is jailed.
The film ends with a message: "This film is dedicated to those who have been persecuted, are being persecuted, or may be persecuted. For the color of their skin. Their religious beliefs. Their artistic expression. Their gender. Or their sexual preferences. Anyone whose human rights have been violated."
On September 24, 2013 the full film was uploaded onto YouTube and released via a new BitTorrent-based feature called Bundle, consisting of unlocked trailers and stills, plus three videos and a written message from Madonna, all locked but unlockable by submitting a valid email address.
Nothing was scripted. Madonna asked her dancers to improvise; and her monologue was written and added to the video afterwards, only after she could watch the footage.