The title of the film arose from discussions between de Heer and David Gulpilil about a photograph of ten canoeists poling across the Arafura Swamp, taken by anthropologist Donald Thomson in 1936.
The film's title originated from conversations between de Heer and David Gulpilil about a photograph of ten canoeists paddling across the Arafura Swamp, captured by anthropologist Donald Thomson in 1936.